Odessa resident received 3 years in prison for making a phone call

Court in South Odessa region sentenced a man to three years in prison for making a phone call to a mobile operator’s office Vodafone Ukraine. The verdict was published in the Unified State register of court decisions.

As follows from the case file, the man called the operator’s support service with a complaint about sending SMS messages with calls to help the army and make donations. During the conversation, he made statements that the investigation and the prosecutor’s office considered justification of armed aggression and humiliation of national dignity.

According to the verdict, during a telephone call the defendant “actively expressed an anti-Ukrainian position”using language that has been found to be divisive. The recording of the conversation made in the call center was transferred to the company management, and then to Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).

After verification, the materials were transferred to court, where the case was considered under the article on “justifying armed aggression and inciting national hatred”. The court sentenced the defendant to three years’ imprisonment to be served in a general regime correctional facility.

The convicted person himself admitted the fact of the call in the courtroom, but insisted that he did not pursue the goal of humiliating anyone’s nationality or justifying military actions. The man’s lawyer announced his intention to appeal.

The case caused widespread discussion in Ukrainian society. Some lawyers believe that judicial practice in such cases should be transparent and not allow punishment for the very fact of expressing an opinion. Other experts emphasize that under martial law, the law severely limits permissible public assessments that could harm state security.

At the time of publication, information about filing an appeal was not included in the register. Vodafone representatives did not give public comments on the case.

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