Słuck man executed for murdering three-year-old son – rights activist

October 7, Pozirk. Alaksandar Taratuta from Słuck, Minsk region, was executed on October 9, 2024, after the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence imposed on the man for murdering his three-year-old son, rights defender Andrej Pałuda said.

The activist, who coordinates the Human Rights Defenders Against the Death Penalty campaign, addressed the opposition Coordination Council’s hearing on the death penalty in Belarus.

Three years ago, the Minsk Regional Court sentenced Taratuta to death, while the other defendant in the case, Anastasija Taratu­ta, the boy’s moth­er, was giv­en 25 years in prison. The parents were found guilty on charges of torturing and murdering the minor.

In January 2023, the parents hit their son at least 14 consecutive times and called an ambulance when he died, investigators said. The child was reportedly regu­lar­ly beat­en for mis­be­hav­ior, was exhaust­ed and weighed only sev­en kilo­grams at the time of death.

Belarus remains the only country in Europe that still uses the death penalty. About 350 people have been executed during Alaksandar Łukašenka’s 30 years in power, Belarusian opposition leader Śviatłana Cichanoŭskaja said last year. Only a few cases of clemency are known.

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