A person convicted over the arson attack on a military enlistment office has spoken out about violence in prison and poor detention conditions.

Dmitry Mikheyev, a 24-year-old from Bratsk, a city in Siberia, has said that he was subjected to violence in the Verkhneuralsk prison, where he is serving a sentence in connection with the arson attack on a military enlistment office. This was reported by the Telegram channel of the political persecution support group “Freedom for Political Prisoners.”

Mikheyev was sent a questionnaire about conditions in prison. In response to the question, “Do the guards beat you?” he replied: “Sometimes; to avoid the camera or they take you away.”

He also said that he is not allowed to make phone calls, his letters are not passed on, and he is not permitted to order essential items and food from the prison shop. “They don’t give you your own food either,” Mikheyev wrote. On the question of prison food, he responded that since February it has improved, whereas previously “it was a disaster.”

The convicted man said he only manages a quick wash: “No more than five minutes in the ‘bathhouse.’”

Mikheyev said he has a normal relationship with other prisoners. He described his health as good.

The support group has reported that a complaint has been submitted to the prosecutor’s office.

• In January 2025, Mikheyev was sentenced to 18 years in a strict regime penal colony on charges of committing a terrorist act (Part 1, Article 205 of the Criminal Code), training for terrorist activities (Article 205.3 of the Criminal Code), and high treason (Article 275 of the Criminal Code). On appeal, his sentence was reduced by three months. Initially, the young man was charged only under a less serious article—intentional damage to property (Part 2, Article 167 of the Criminal Code).
• Mikheyev has been in custody for more than three years. In November 2025, his mother Irina passed away. According to volunteers, she had heart problems and was under 50 years old. She was the only person who brought food parcels to her son. His elder brother refused to support him, and their father had left the family long ago. Now, volunteers are helping the convicted man.
• According to law enforcement, in January 2023 Mikheyev threw a bottle containing a flammable liquid through a military enlistment office window. He was also accused of donating to the “Freedom for Russia” legion. Before his arrest, he worked as a sound engineer at Bratsk Broadcasting Company.