He was stopped before collecting a French humanitarian visa in Yerevan, then sent back to Russia. Rights groups say cross border database links enable such transfers.
At Minsk airport, a Kaluga resident, Ivan Lyubshin, was detained, as he planned to fly to Armenia with the intention of emigrating to France. According to OVD-Info, citing Lyubshin himself, he was serving a five-year term in Russia for a comment about the explosion at the Arkhangelsk FSB building.
The detention occurred in the evening of May 1: at first he was handed over to the local police, and later to Belarusian security forces, who took him to the Russian Federation. In Moscow, Kaluga investigators detained the man.
Lyubshin is accused of violating administrative surveillance under Part 1 of Article 314.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. He himself expressed concerns that he could be charged with attempting to travel to Ukraine, as the security forces suggested in his presence.
History and context of the case
In 2020, Ivan Lyubshin was sentenced to five years and two months in a penal colony for “justification of terrorism” over a comment about 17-year-old Mikhail Zhlobytsky, who carried out an explosion at the Arkhangelsk FSB building. The explosion killed a teenager, and three officers were injured.
In various regions of Russia, more than a dozen criminal cases have been opened for “justification of terrorism” based on publications and reposts, several of which, including Lyubshin, received actual prison terms. Lyubshin was released in March 2025.
According to information, France approved a humanitarian visa for Lyubshin, and he is to collect the document at the embassy in Yerevan on May 6. Russian security forces, after the forced return, told the man that a case had been opened against him for evading administrative supervision.
Status of the case and expected court proceedings
Under the verdict, Lyubshin is required to remain under supervision for eight years: to report to the police and not leave the region without permission from the authorities. At home, law enforcement conducted a search and summoned him for questioning on April 4; however, Lyubshin was not released, and an administrative case was opened against him for petty hooliganism due to profane remarks in a public place. He is currently awaiting the hearing of this administrative case at the Kaluga District Court.
Last week, information emerged that a Russian conscript who received an electronic summons could not leave Belarus. Human rights defenders pointed to the possible synchronization of border guard databases between Belarus and Russia, which has been ongoing for many years.
The Lyubshin case underscores the complexity of legal processes around public statements and international contexts tied to migration and border issues.