The court in Volgograd extended the arrest period for Roman Melnychenko.

The arrest period of lawyer Roman Melnychenko, a former lecturer at Volgograd State University, accused under the article on discrediting the army, has been extended for another two months.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot", former lecturer at Volgograd State University, expert in international law Roman Melnychenko was arrested for two months in July, and security forces conducted a search in his apartment. The reason for the detention was a publication on social media, in which the security forces saw discrediting of the army. In early September, lawyer Dmitry Sotnikov stated that Roman Melnychenko was tortured in the pre-trial detention center No. 5 in the city of Leninsk, Volgograd region. According to the lawyer, Roman's chronic diseases have worsened, and he is not receiving medical assistance.

The Central District Court of Volgograd extended the arrest period of lawyer Roman Melnychenko for two months. He was previously arrested until September 20, and now the preventive measure has been extended until November 20, the publication V1 reported, citing the court's press service.

The court noted that the charge of discrediting the army against Melnychenko is related to video recordings that the lawyer published on his social media. Melnychenko's recordings "contain a negative assessment" of the actions of the RF Armed Forces - these actions are characterized, in particular, as "criminal and aggressive," the press service of the courts of the Volgograd region reported.

The article attributed to Roman Melnychenko (Article 280.3 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) provides for up to five years of imprisonment. The videos that became the reason for the prosecution were published on YouTube and in the social network "VKontakte," notes the project "Word for Defense."

Responsibility for discrediting the armed forces was introduced on March 4, 2022. After that, residents of Russia, including those from the North Caucasus Federal District and the Southern Federal District, began to face prosecution under the relevant Article 20.3.3 of the Administrative Offenses Code of the Russian Federation. It provides for a fine for citizens from 30,000 to 100,000 rubles, and repeated violations within a year threaten criminal prosecution.

In September 2024, Roman Melnychenko was arrested for three days on charges of disobeying police officers and was also fined 30,000 rubles under the article on discrediting the army.