Man from Vinnytsia supplied Crimean tea to a penal colony in Russia

The Court of Appeal has increased the sentence for an entrepreneur from Vinnytsia who remotely managed a business in occupied Crimea and supplied products to the Russian colony.

This was reported by Court Reporter with reference to the verdict of February 2.

According to the case file, after the annexation of the peninsula, the man received Russian citizenship and registered the trademarks "Teas of Crimea" and "Crimean Nectar". Even after moving to Vinnytsia in 2022, he continued to control the company's activities through the website and coordinate work remotely. Despite the official termination of his status as an individual entrepreneur in February 2024, the actual management of the business did not stop.

In March 2025, the defendant used Telegram to arrange the sale of herbal teas to the deputy head of a penal colony in the Krasnodar Territory of the Russian Federation, an institution whose staff is involved in the war against Ukraine and is involved in the torture of Ukrainian prisoners. The entrepreneur redirected the customer to his accountant in Crimea, after which the colony purchased products worth more than 10 thousand Russian rubles. The funds for the goods were usually transferred to the account of the accused's father in a Russian bank.

In court, the man pleaded guilty and repented, explaining his actions by the need to support his parents who remained in the occupation. He claimed that his father received the profits, and he himself is currently actively donating to the needs of the Armed Forces, so he asked not to be deprived of his liberty. The court of first instance only sentenced him to a fine of 170 thousand hryvnias with confiscation of property.

However, the Court of Appeal disagreed with this lenient decision, emphasizing the public danger of cooperation with the repressive authorities of the Russian Federation. The new sentence provides for 4 years of imprisonment with a probationary period of 2 years, without confiscation of property, but with a 10-year ban on holding certain positions.

Катерина Глушко