A Russian who moved to Ukraine got 13 years the moment he visited relatives back home
Eleven alleged transfers of about 100 hryvnias ($2.23) each led Ivan Stolbov to a harsh sentence after he returned to Russia.
On 10 August 2026, a Russian court sentenced Ivan Stolbov, a 34-year-old man from Sverdlovsk, to 13 years in a high-security penal colony. The court's decision came after Stolbov allegedly made 11 separate donations of approximately 100 hryvnias (around $2.23) each to an unidentified Ukrainian organization. Born in Sarapul, Russia, Stolbov had been working as a procurement manager prior to his arrest.
He was apprehended in July 2025 at Yekaterinburg's Koltsovo International Airport while visiting relatives in Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine. The court found that Stolbov was not registered in Russia and subsequently imposed the sentence despite the small monetary value of his donations. The Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group (KHPG) reports that Russian authorities have been increasingly targeting Russians and Ukrainians who donate to Ukrainian causes, with punishments ranging from eight years in prison for smaller donations to up to 20 years for high treason.
Written by urgent.news from Euromaidan Press's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.
