The full story
His ordeal has lasted for 213 days
Mikhail Mikhailovitch Lochtchinine holds both Belgian and Russian citizenship. He has not lived in Russia since 2000 and has visited the country no more than three times since then.
Mikhail entered the Russian Federation through the Ubylinka border checkpoint in the Pskov region on the night of June 30 to July 1, 2025. He was traveling on a Yamaha motorcycle with German license plates. He had been living in Trier, Germany, since 2018. The purpose of his trip was to visit his sick father, who lives in Saint Petersburg and had undergone two heart surgeries.
At the border, Mikhail’s phone was taken for inspection. It contained numerous contacts from Ukraine, including those of his brother and sisters, who live there.
In order to justify prolonging his detention, border guards deliberately provoked Mikhail into violating the border zone regulations by directing him toward a store to buy water, intentionally sending him in the wrong direction. This action ensured his detention for two weeks. In other words, the border guards had planned his detention in advance.
Mikhail was given a choice: to be held in a basement in solitary confinement or to stay in a hotel at his own expense. He chose the hotel. The border guards confiscated his phones, documents, and motorcycle keys and placed him in the Dubrava Hotel in Pytalovo, near the border. He was almost completely cut off from the outside world and was only allowed to leave the hotel accompanied by guards.
During this time, the border guards found personal correspondence with Mikhail’s former girlfriend, with whom he had been in a close relationship in 2021. She had asked him for financial help, and the correspondence continued from July to October 2022. This correspondence later became the basis for Mikhail’s indictment. After October 2022, Mikhail had no further contact with this woman. At present, the family is not authorized to disclose the content of this correspondence, but it is stated with complete certainty that it was purely personal and did not concern any third-party or state interests.
Mikhail was detained at the Dubrava Hotel from July 4 to August 1, 2025, without any formal charges. He was repeatedly told that his case only required the signature of the head of the FSB and that he would then be released.
During this period, those holding him repeatedly called Mikhail’s mother, assuring her that he would be released soon and describing the situation as a purely bureaucratic process. This appeared to be a deliberate attempt to calm the family and prevent them from hiring a lawyer. The final such promise was made on July 30, after what they described as a phone call to a general.
On July 30, an investigator arrived at the hotel to question Mikhail and immediately attempted to stage another provocation, falsely claiming that Mikhail had caused a disturbance. Armed special forces were called to the hotel to arrest him. The provocation failed: when the special forces arrived, Mikhail was calmly outside smoking, and they left without taking action. Afterward, the investigator contacted the same general and informed Mikhail that he might be released within two days.
Instead of being released, on August 2, three armed men arrived at the hotel without identifying themselves, handcuffed Mikhail, took him away, and transported him to an unknown location. That same evening, his motorcycle, which had remained parked next to the hotel throughout his detention, was also taken.
Mikhail’s lawyer filed official complaints with the prosecutor’s office, the police, and the investigative committee regarding his disappearance and the theft of his motorcycle. For some time, his whereabouts remained unknown. It was later discovered that he had effectively been kidnapped and transported more than one thousand kilometers away to Stary Oskol, where a strict-regime detention facility is located.
The conditions and treatment of prisoners there are appalling. Mikhail was held together with Ukrainian prisoners of war and was subjected to both physical and psychological abuse and torture. His glasses were taken away despite his severe myopia (–8 diopters), leaving him nearly blind. He was forced to walk bent over with his head down. He was stripped naked and beaten. Mikhail later reported all of this to his lawyer. These actions were clearly intended to break him psychologically, suppress any hope of release, and force him to sign documents placed before him.
On August 21, Mikhail was transferred by border guards to the Pskov SIZO-1 detention center and formally charged with treason.
Pskov SIZO-1 detention center.
Pskov SIZO-1 detention center.Investigators and a public defender forced Mikhail to sign a document stating that he had been freely traveling around Russia until August 21. This effectively deprived him of the ability to defend himself. There is documented proof that Mikhail was in Stary Oskol during this period, making it impossible for him to have traveled freely without documents, without his motorcycle, and without informing his relatives or his sick father, whom he had intended to visit. This indicates collusion between investigators and the public defender.
The same public defender also called Mikhail’s mother and threatened her, stating that if she hired an independent lawyer, it would harm Mikhail and that he would be denied access to court and case materials. There is an audio recording of this conversation. Despite these threats, the family hired a lawyer who assisted in locating Mikhail.
A calm, peaceful, and kind man with no criminal record and no intention of committing any crime was kidnapped and tortured. At the same time, a charge of treason was fabricated against him, based solely on private telephone correspondence with his former girlfriend from Ukraine.
Mikhail suffers from serious vision problems, including severe myopia since childhood and signs of retinal detachment. Without qualified medical care, he risks losing his sight entirely. He has also been experiencing heart problems for several years. In detention, he has developed a severe allergy and urgently requires medical consultation and medication, none of which have been provided.
Since August, the Belgian Embassy has repeatedly requested permission from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to visit Mikhail in detention, assess his condition, and speak with him. These requests have received no response.
Throughout his detention, Mikhail has been subjected to unprecedented pressure aimed at forcing him to sign a false confession. His rights to meet relatives and to make phone calls have been deliberately restricted as a means of coercion.
Given that the charges against Mikhail are falsified and unsupported by factual evidence, in a democratic country one would expect a fair trial. However, according to official statistics, there have been no acquittals under this specific indictment in the Russian Federation, a fact openly communicated by the prosecution. The potential sentence ranges from 12 years of imprisonment.
Mikhail’s family is deeply grateful to all those who have shown support, many of whom they did not even know before this tragedy.
Update – January 6, 2026
Mike has been held alone in a cell designed for four people for more than one month. Prolonged isolation without communication in such a limited space is an extreme challenge for any human being. Despite this, Mike remains positive and reassures his family, reminding them that he has always been introverted by nature.
He exercises regularly and rereads the books he has, having already finished all of them once. He practices music using a printed piano keyboard and asked his family to send him pictures of a piano to keep this skill active. He also requested songs from rock bands such as The Beatles and Queen to train his memory and improve his language skills. In addition, he asked for programming books, as his work has always been a true passion. His family is currently trying to arrange this.
On December 19, a court session was held to determine the date of the first trial hearing. Mike’s lawyer was unable to attend due to the impossibility of coordinating schedules on such short notice. The lawyer had previously instructed Mike on procedural matters and explained that, formally, a public defender could be appointed for this type of session.
Despite the lawyer’s written request to the court stating that any public defender would be acceptable except those who had committed illegal actions against Mike, the FSB proposed exactly the same public defender who had previously pressured Mike to sign documents against himself. After the session, Mike wrote to his family that he felt deeply disoriented and could not understand these actions, particularly given that he had already filed complaints with the bar association regarding this public defender’s conduct. These actions appear aimed at exerting further pressure on Mike and undermining his ability to defend himself.
Update – January 21, 2026
On Friday 16/1, the theoretical start date of the trial, Mike’s lawyers filed several motions, including:
- a medical examination;
- the presence of an interpreter.
The request for a medical examination was forwarded to the Pskov detention center, which may indicate some "progress".
As for the interpreter, the court deliberated at length but ultimately rejected the request, citing a lack of time. The lawyers will raise this issue again on Friday 23/1, the date on which the trial is expected to actually begin.
Overall, according to the lawyers, the prosecution is rushing to conclude the trial as quickly as possible.
It appears to have prepared the case in a way that makes the proceedings short and efficient for the prosecution, rather than thorough or fair.
Update – January 30, 2026
Due to the illness of one of Mike’s lawyers, this hearing had to be postponed.
The trial is now scheduled to resume on February 12.
