13:29, April 8, 2024Source: 

A volunteer from Belgorod, Alexander Demidenko, who had been helping Ukrainians return home from Russia since 2022, died in a pre-trial detention center. “That’s So” writes about this with reference to a source from Demidenko’s circle.

According to the publication, the man died on April 5, and three days later, Demidenko’s lawyer informed his wife and son about this.

“I think my father committed suicide, since for such an active and freedom-loving person the thought of a possible future imprisonment was unbearable. He had already been psychologically killed for six months in a pre-trial detention center without visits from his family or even books,” Demidenko’s son wrote in his telegram channel.

Since the spring of 2022, Demidenko has been helping Ukrainian refugees get from Belgorod to the checkpoint on the border with Ukraine. He also provided many of them with overnight accommodation in his house.

In October 2023, Demidenko was arrested twice on administrative charges of public drinking of alcohol. During his second arrest, a criminal case was opened against him for illegal possession of weapons, after which he was transferred to a pre-trial detention center. The man’s wife said that he found weapons from World War II on the property; Demidenko himself said in court that he did not have time to hand over the findings to the police.

(C)MEDUZA 2024