By charge

Defence under the article your relative has been charged with

Families abroad are usually given an article number and nothing else. "Article 228" or "Article 111" tells you nothing about the sentence, the evidence needed, or where the case is weak. These pages explain each charge in plain English and set out how it is actually defended.

What the article covers and how its parts differ in severity
What the prosecution has to prove, element by element
The evidence these cases usually stand on — and how it fails
Realistic sentencing ranges rather than headline maximums
The reclassification routes that make the largest difference
Specific issues that arise when the accused is a foreign national

Why the article number matters so much

Russian criminal law is codified in fine detail. An article of the Criminal Code is divided into parts, and each part has its own sentencing range. Moving a case from part 4 of an article to part 2 of the same article can take a sentence from fifteen years to five. Moving it to a different article can remove the custodial element entirely.

This is why the first substantive question in any case is not "did he do it" but "is this the right article and the right part". A great deal of Russian criminal defence work is about the boundary between neighbouring offences, and about the quantitative thresholds — the weight of a substance, the size of a loss — that shift a case from one part to the next.

Drugs, fraud, bribery, forgery, violence. What each charge actually means, what it carries, and where the defence usually is.

Charges we cover in detail

We have written a separate page for each of the charges that most often affect foreign nationals in Russia. Each one sets out the law, the sentencing range, the evidence, and the defence. Start with the article your relative has been charged under; if you do not know it, ask the investigator or the consulate, or call us and we will find out.

The list is not exhaustive. We act under other articles of the Criminal Code as well — if the charge you are facing is not listed, it does not mean we do not handle it.

A word about what these pages are not

These are explanatory materials, written to make a frightening situation legible to someone who does not read Russian and has never encountered the Russian legal system. They are not legal advice on your case, and nothing here can substitute for a lawyer who has read the file.

Sentencing ranges in particular should be read carefully. The maximum for an article is not the expected outcome; it is the ceiling. Actual sentences depend on the part of the article, the number of episodes, prior convictions, mitigating factors, and whether the case is contested.

By article

Charges

Drug possession and trafficking

The charge that affects more foreign nationals in Russia than any other. The gap between possession and supply is the whole case.

Smuggling of narcotic substances

Charged at airports, land borders and postal centres. Often against people who did not know what they were carrying.

Fraud

The article most often used to turn a failed business deal into a criminal case. The defence usually lives in the word "intent".

Bribery

Including the roadside payment to an officer. Charged as giving a bribe, and it carries a prison sentence.

Forgery and use of forged documents

The most common charge against migrant workers. Often brought against people who paid an agency for what they believed were genuine papers.

Sexual offences

Decided on testimony and expert opinion, with almost nothing physical to test. The account is fixed in the first days — and it is fixed without you.

Theft, robbery and armed robbery

Three articles for taking the same thing. What separates them is whether anyone saw, and whether force was used — and that is where the years are.

Intentional infliction of grievous bodily harm

A fight that ended badly. The line between this article, murder, and lawful self-defence is drawn by intent — and it is drawn after the fact.

Border and migration offences

Charges that exist only because the accused is a foreign national. Often brought against the person who was exploited rather than the one who profited.

Murder

The gravest charge in the Criminal Code. Also the one where the classification is most often wrong.

Charges we handle beyond this list

The pages above cover what comes up most often. They are not the limit of what we defend, and a charge being unusual for a foreign national does not make it less serious.

Frequently asked

I only know the article number. Is that enough to start?

Yes. The article number plus the city is usually enough for us to identify the investigative body and establish where the person is held. Everything else follows from that.

The charge listed is not one of the seven pages you have written. Do you take the case?

Yes. The pages cover the charges that arise most often for foreign nationals; our practice covers criminal law generally. Tell us the article and we will tell you plainly whether it is within our competence.

Can the charge change after the arrest?

Frequently. Investigators often begin with a heavier article and settle on a lighter one, or the reverse. The charge is formally fixed when it is presented under Article 171 of the Criminal Procedure Code, and it can still be amended up to the indictment. This is precisely the window where defence work has the greatest effect.