Igor Strelkov (real name Igor Girkin), serving his sentence in Correctional Colony No. 5 in the city of Kirovo-Chepetsk, has faced a disciplinary sanction that could negatively affect his chances of receiving parole. According to information from a number of sources, the colony administration reprimanded Strelkov for storing medications prescribed to him by a doctor in his bedside table.
According to the established rules, convicts are required to store personal belongings and medications in specially designated places. However, as Strelkov's lawyers claim, there are no alternative places to store medications in his cell, except for the bedside table. They emphasize that the drugs were officially permitted and brought into the colony in accordance with medical prescriptions. In this regard, the defense considers the imposed penalty as a formal attempt to prevent the parole of their client.
Let us recall that Igor Strelkov was detained in July 2023 and in January 2024, the Moscow City Court sentenced him to four years of imprisonment in a general regime penal colony on charges of public calls for extremist activity. In November 2024, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation upheld the sentence, rejecting the defense's cassation appeal.
According to Russian law, a convicted person can apply for parole after serving a certain portion of their sentence and in the absence of any violations of the prison regime. However, the presence of disciplinary sanctions, such as reprimands or warnings, may be grounds for denying such a petition. In Strelkov's case, the disciplinary sanction for storing medications may significantly complicate the process of considering his parole petition.