TALLINN, Estonia — A physician has been sentenced to over five years in prison for allegedly spreading falsehoods regarding the Russian military, amidst a widespread crackdown on dissent by the Kremlin. Dr. Nadezhda Buyanova, aged 68, was convicted on Tuesday after being accused of making disparaging remarks about the ongoing conflict in Ukraine while attending to a patient.

The case stems from a complaint lodged by Anastasia Akinshina, the mother of one of Buyanova’s patients. She claimed that during a consultation, Buyanova told them that Akinshina’s husband, a Russian serviceman killed in Ukraine, was a valid target for Ukrainian forces and criticized Moscow for its actions in the war. The situation escalated when a video of Akinshina expressing her outrage was circulated broadly, prompting Alexander Bastrykin, head of Russia’s Investigative Committee, to personally advocate for legal action against the pediatrician.

Buyanova has consistently denied the allegations against her, asserting that she never made the statements she’s been accused of. In a heartfelt plea during her closing remarks in court last week, she called for her acquittal and spoke about the emotional toll the accusations have had on her.

Her defense team argued that the prosecution had not provided adequate proof of the alleged exchange, including any recordings of the interaction, and claimed that Akinshina had fabricated the allegations out of hostility toward Ukrainians, as reported by the independent media outlet Mediazona that covered the trial proceedings extensively. During her closing statement, Buyanova expressed distress over the claims made against her and lamented the implications of the charges.

She stated, “It is painful to read the accusations in the indictment,” and became visibly emotional. She emphasized, “A doctor, especially a pediatrician, cannot wish harm to a child or their family. Only a monster could make such statements,” as quoted by Mediazona.

In March 2022, the Russian government enacted laws criminalizing the dissemination of information that contradicts the official narrative concerning the invasion of Ukraine. These laws have been increasingly utilized to target dissenters and protestors. According to OVD-Info, a prominent organization monitoring political detentions in Russia, over 1,000 individuals have faced criminal charges related to expressing opposition to the war.