Students from Vitebsk face up to 15 years in prison for distributing psychotropic substances

The Investigative Committee Department for the Vitebsk Region has completed the investigation of a criminal case initiated against students of a vocational college in Vitebsk, who organized the sale of psychotropic substances in the regional center, reported the official representative of the department, Inna Gorbacheva.

Vitebsk students face up to 15 years in prison for distributing psychotropic substances

The suppression of the criminal group's activities was the result of long-term work by employees of the Investigative Committee and drug control units of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, including the Department of Internal Affairs of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee.

During the preliminary investigation, it was established that two underage residents of Vitebsk entered into a criminal conspiracy with the aim of jointly distributing psychotropic substances among the youth of the regional center. Implementing their intent, they purchased spice in Russia, and upon returning to Vitebsk, they independently packaged the illegal goods. Trying to sell the psychotropic substances, the young people offered spice to their acquaintances: fellow students in college, former classmates, as well as friends who lived nearby. After receiving consent from potential buyers, the offenders gave them a mobile phone number specially connected for criminal business, obliged them to communicate only via SMS messages in the future, and explained how to pay for the goods through electronic payment systems. After the money was received into the specified settlement account, the offenders used a scheme of selling spice through stashes. Having placed the psychotropic substance in a hiding place, the sellers sent an SMS message indicating the location where the buyer could find the stash.

Based on the results of the preliminary investigation, the final charges against both members of the criminal group were brought under Part 3 of Article 328 (illegal acquisition, storage, and illegal sale of psychotropic substances for the purpose of sale, committed by a group of persons, in relation to particularly dangerous psychotropic substances) of the Criminal Code of Belarus. The students face up to 15 years in prison.

Particular attention was paid to the study of the personalities of the accused during the investigation. Both individuals were minors at the time of commencing criminal activity and had no prior convictions. However, they had been repeatedly brought to administrative responsibility and were characterized extremely negatively at their place of residence and study. During the preliminary investigation, they only partially admitted their involvement in the commission of the crime, attempting to evade legal responsibility by presenting various defense theories. Nevertheless, a sufficient amount of evidence has been collected in the criminal case confirming the involvement of the accused in the commission of the crime. Furthermore, the investigation managed to establish that the criminal income received solely from the first batch, which the accused brought to Vitebsk from Russia, amounted to approximately 5 million Belarusian rubles.

During the investigation, numerous inspections, searches, dozens of chemical and other forensic examinations were conducted, witnesses were interrogated, and thorough work was carried out with the accused.

Currently, the investigation has been completed. A decision has been made to transfer the criminal case to the prosecutor for forwarding to court.