A Lieutenant Colonel from the Military Intelligence Faculty is Being Tried for "Treason to the State" in a Case That Appears Political. What is Known About Him?

Ivan Balashenka is 39 years old, originally from Slutsk. According to Belpol, he studied at the Belarusian-Russian University. However, as far as is known, he did not finish it and went to study at the Military Academy.

For a long time, the man built a successful military career. According to "Cyber Partisans," he served in the 103rd Guards Independent Airborne Brigade of the Special Operations Forces.

When Balashenka rose to senior officer ranks, he moved to teaching in the capital. As early as November 2021, he was mentioned in an official report of the Vitebsk Cadet School as an honorary guest — a lieutenant colonel and lecturer at the Military Intelligence Faculty of the Military Academy.

But around the turn of 2021 and 2022, a sharp turn occurred in the officer's life. He left service in the Armed Forces and drastically changed his field of activity. Starting in December 2021, the former serviceman settled in Minsk and worked exclusively in private car fleets. Over several years, he constantly changed workplaces in taxi services, car repair shops, and logistics companies.

The exact circumstances of Balashenka's detention, as well as the essence of the charges against him, remain unknown. He found himself in the dock along with Henrykh Ageyev, who was allegedly detained in the "ByPol case" in occupied Crimea and tortured, as well as Yury Vasilevsky.

Henrykh Ageyev, as human rights activists reported, is a former law enforcement officer from the Brest region. Yury Vasilevsky worked at BNTU and was included in the Register of Forensic Experts (his profile is forensic construction and technical expertise).

Павялічыць

In total, they are being tried under nine serious articles of the Criminal Code, including "participation in a terrorist organization," "act of terrorism," "treason to the state," "Viasna" wrote.

It is known that Henrykh was allegedly detained in the "ByPol case" more than a year and a half ago in Russian-occupied Crimea, where he was beaten and tortured. Later, he was transferred to Belarus and placed in the KGB pre-trial detention center. Yury was detained a year ago under unknown circumstances. Human rights activists had not previously known about Ivan Balashenka. The details of this case are unknown.

Depending on each person's role, Henrykh, Yury, and Ivan are charged with the following articles of the Criminal Code:

• Part 4 Art. 309 (Intentional disabling of a vehicle or communication routes);
• Part 3 Art. 289 (Act of terrorism);
• Part 2 Art. 290-5 (Organization of activities of a terrorist organization and participation in it);
• Part 2 Art. 290-4 (Creation of an organization for terrorist activities or participation in it);
• Parts 1 and 2 Art. 356 (Treason to the state (as amended by the law of 09.01.2019);
• Part 3 Art. 130 (Incitement of hatred);
• Part 1 Art. 179 (Illegal collection or dissemination of information about private life — excluded 26.05.2021);
• Parts 2 and 4 Art. 295 (Illegal actions in relation to firearms, ammunition, and explosives);
• Part 1 Art. 342 (Organization or preparation of actions that grossly violate public order or active participation in them).

What is known about the defendants in the case?

Henrykh Ageyev — a former law enforcement officer from the Brest region. In September 2026, he turned 32. The political prisoner was detained in February 2024 in Crimea. As Ageyev himself told his former cellmate, he is a defendant in the "ByPol case" — he allegedly traveled on assignment from a former Interior Ministry officer, now a representative of the "ByPol" initiative, Aliaksandr Azarau. For about seven months, he was held in the FSB pre-trial detention center along with Ukrainian prisoners of war, where he was beaten and tortured. Throughout this time, the man's whereabouts were unknown. In September 2024, Ageyev was extradited to Belarus, without any documents being provided, so the time spent in the FSB pre-trial detention center will not be counted towards his sentence. The Belarusian was transported to his homeland for a day with a bag over his head, his former cellmate recounted.

Yury Vasilevsky graduated from the Belarusian National Technical University. He worked at BNTU first as an assistant professor, and later as a lecturer and senior lecturer at the Department of Power Supply. Since 2017, Vasilevsky has been included in the Register of Forensic Experts. His profile is forensic construction and technical expertise. He was detained in September 2025. Initially, he was held in the KGB pre-trial detention center, and from March 2026, he was transferred to Pre-trial Detention Center No. 1.

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