Journalist tells about life in a Crimean colony

The journalist was released after four years in Russian captivity, which he spent in Kerch colony #2. There, they tried to force him to work for the occupiers, but he refused, despite pressure and the threat of torture.

Vladyslav Yesypenko told about this in an interview with Zmina.info.

The freelance journalist for the Krym.Realii project (Radio Liberty) and ICTV TV channel was released after more than four years in Russian custody. He was serving his sentence in Kerch Penal Colony #2, which is known as the "red zone" where the administration has full control over the lives of prisoners.

He was detained in March 2021 in occupied Crimea. Russian special services charged him with possession of explosives by planting a grenade in his car. The journalist refused to admit guilt, but after a day and a half of torture, he was forced to sign a confession. In February 2022, the court sentenced him to six years in prison, later reduced to five years. He spent four years and three months in captivity under the "year and a half" system.

According to him, the Kerch colony, where he was sent, was significantly different from the detention center. It was a barbed wire barracks with its own kitchen, shower and industrial area. Convicts were imposed "professions" - he was formally registered as a laborer, and even received a so-called diploma after lectures on packing boxes. However, he refused to work, because the colony produced materials for the war against Ukraine, for example, shields for trenches.

I said I would not work. It would mean working for the occupiers. I refused, even if they tortured me, I wouldn't have agreed," said Yesypenko.

To keep fit, the journalist read books, ran around in his cell, did horizontal bar exercises, and even continued his hobby of walrusing. On the coldest days, he walked barefoot in the snow - other prisoners saw him through the bars on their way to breakfast.

Yesypenko also recalled that he constantly felt uncertainty in the colony: the administration could initiate new investigative actions at any time and add a term.

I always lived with the feeling that they could fabricate something again. It was a psychological pressure that never went away," the political prisoner said.

On June 20, 2025, the journalist was released, and in August he returned to Ukraine. Currently, Yesypenko is undergoing rehabilitation and plans to combine journalism with human rights activities to help other Ukrainian political prisoners.

The journalist also spoke about his meetings with an FSB general who, over tea and candy, hinted at the possibility of reducing his sentence in exchange for cooperation. He did not succumb to recruitment and explained that the publicity of his case was a protection against pressure. After his release from the Kerch colony, he was accompanied by his lawyers, and his way home went through Adler, Yerevan and Prague, from where he returned to mainland Ukraine.

Анна Бальчінос