According to publications by some pro-Russian Telegram channels, a man from Odessa was allegedly sentenced by the Ukrainian authorities to 15 years in prison for showing the flag of Russia and the inscription “Odessa is a Russian city”. The alleged news was then picked up by various users and pages on social media, without, however, going into more detail and without making it known that the man was not convicted of this act.
For those in a hurry
- A man from Odessa has reportedly been sentenced to 15 years in prison by Ukrainian authorities for expressing his support for Russia.
- In reality, the man was convicted of collaborating with the Russian authorities.
- He had formed a group with which he worked on behalf of the Russians and provided military intelligence.
- Members of the group were arrested while carrying out a kidnapping.
- The group intended to profitably exploit the abductee and exchange it for Russian prisoners.
analyses
Here’s an example of a Facebook post (dated November 30, 2022) suggesting partial narration:
A court in Odessa (under the Kiev regime) sentenced a man to 15 years in prison for putting up a poster with the Russian tricolor and the words “Odessa is a Russian city”.
The complete news
The news of a man’s sentence to 15 years in Odessa prison has been circulating since November 29, 2022 in the morning (10:01 Italian time) via the official Ukrainian Facebook page «Офіс Генерального прокурора» («General Prosecutor’s Office»). In the notice we find the photo circulated by users (and pro-Russian Telegram channels, as found by Open Fact-Checking):
The history of the flag and the billboard with the inscription “Odessa – Russian City” (“Одесса – русский город”) is only part of the whole story. From the official press release, we learn that the man was in contact with the FSB (the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation) and received tips about subversive activities and support for the Russian army. In fact, the man allegedly formed an operational group (defined as a “criminal group” by Ukrainian authorities) with which he collected information about Ukrainian military positions in Odessa. As for the flag, the group received instructions to hang it in a building in Odessa so that Russian media could use it for propaganda purposes.
Some members of the group were arrested in a kidnapping in late September 2022. In order to fool the man, an Odessa entrepreneur who had volunteered during the Russian invasion, they had disguised themselves as soldiers. The aim of the kidnapping was to procure goods and exchange them for Russian prisoners.
The dissemination of misleading messages
Some users read a text that came from a Telegram channel called @WarRealTime:
Here is the post of the pro-Russian Telegram channel, published on November 29, 2022:
Other Facebook posts quote another source, that of the Donbass Italy group:
Here is the Telegram post from Donbass Italia, also published on November 29, 2022 (at 16:12 Italian time) and shared by pro-Russian Giorgio Bianchi, who claims to have picked up the message from RT Russian:
Conclusions
Pro-Russian social channels are sharing a highly biased story about an Odessa citizen’s 15-year prison sentence. The man was not punished for simply hanging up the Russian flag and calling Odessa a “Russian city,” but for allegedly collaborating with the Russian military and orchestrating the kidnapping of a man.
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