A student from Buryatia convicted of treason has gone on hunger strike over mistreatment in prison.

Alexey Badmaev, aged 23, has gone on hunger strike in the prison in Verkhneuralsk, according to Alexandra Garmadzhapova, head of the Free Buryatia Foundation.

According to Badmaev, prisoners in the jail are beaten, have their photographs and letters from loved ones taken away, as well as their warm clothing. He himself has not been taken out for a walk even once.

“The staff have got completely brazen: yesterday they kicked me in the legs and threatened to smash my head against the wall if I didn’t stop acting up. They took everything from me: my only long johns, my T-shirt, my thermal jumper. They laugh, mock us, insult us, and swear at us. They are convinced they can act with impunity,” he told his parents.

Badmaev also said that food bought in the shop is not handed over to prisoners until it has spoiled.

After several days on hunger strike, the convicted student reported that he was feeling weaker: “I have no strength, as I write this even my arm gets tired.”

According to “People of Baikal” they specify that he has been on hunger strike since 8 April.

On 27 April, Badmaev was placed in a punishment cell (SHIZO) for 15 days for making his bed at 21:00 the previous evening. He had already been sent to SHIZO in November 2025, just before a planned extended visit with his parents. The formal reason for the punishment was that Badmaev failed to do his exercises. As a result, he was unable to see his parents.

• In January 2025, Badmaev was sentenced to seven years in a penal colony on charges of treason (Article 275 of the Criminal Code), justification of terrorism (part 2 of Article 205.2), and attempt to finance an illegal armed group (part 1 of Article 208, with application of part 3 of Article 30).
• The student was accused of treason for sending 500 roubles (about US$5) to the author of the YouTube channel “To be or” (some sources claim its author is originally from Ukraine). The charge of attempting to finance an illegal armed group was brought after he tried to send 35,727 roubles (about US$380) from his bank card to the Russian Volunteer Corps—this transfer was blocked by a Russian bank. Badmaev was accused of justifying terrorism over comments made on VKontakte about the “Freedom of Russia” legion.
• In the student’s testimony, he said that he opposed the invasion of Ukraine.
• Last spring, his sentence was made harsher on appeal—the term was raised to 14 years in prison. “People of Baikal” reported that Badmaev’s relatives and his defence team were “shocked by the court’s decision,” which doubled the length of his sentence.