On October 21, 2025, the Odessa Court of Appeals decided to release German journalist and editor of World of Martial Arts after a full year in custody in a pretrial detention center. The decision became possible thanks to the persistent work of the defense, which exposed numerous procedural violations and the absence of any real grounds for the charges.
Sergej Engelmann’s journalistic activities
Sergej Engelmann is a researcher and editor of the magazine World of Martial Arts. He played a key role as coordinator of an international project that enabled the global publication of The Uncompromising Pendulum by Ukrainian scholar and lawyer Dr. Oleg Maltsev and American politician and businessman Tom Patti, a book that describes the unique fighting system of boxing coach Cus D’Amato, widely known for his “peekaboo” technique.
A significant part of Engelmann’s journalistic work involved participation in the Expeditionary Corps led by Dr. Oleg Maltsev. This scientific project focuses on the conceptual analysis and study of the phenomenon of power across various historical periods and regions of Europe and the world. As a journalist, Engelmann documented numerous expeditions, traveling to dozens of countries with the research team.
The magazine he founded, Expedition, became an important platform for presenting the work of Ukrainian researchers to a European audience, providing near-continuous coverage during scientific expeditions.
Before the outbreak of hostilities, Engelmann had worked closely with Ukraine for several years, regularly visiting the country as part of his professional activities.
Circumstances of the arrest
On October 14, 2024, Sergej Engelmann was detained by Ukrainian border guards while traveling from Ukraine to his home in Cologne, just four days after the publication of his journalistic investigation titled “Who ordered the smear campaign against Oleg Maltsev?” In this article, he critically examined the circumstances surrounding the criminal prosecution of the Ukrainian scientist, highlighting possible motives and inconsistencies in the charges.
The journalist was charged under the same article as Dr. Oleg Maltsev (Article 260, Part 1 of the Criminal Code: “Creation of paramilitary formations not provided for by law”). According to the indictment, Engelmann allegedly committed criminal acts between April 20 and May 5, 2022. However, according to the State Border Service of Ukraine, the journalist was not in Ukraine during this period: he left the country on February 20, 2022, and did not return until May 14, 2022.
Procedural violations
The arrest was accompanied by serious violations of procedural rights. All charges were presented to Engelmann exclusively in Ukrainian, preventing him from understanding the nature of the accusations and properly defending his rights. His lawyers spent seven months attempting to obtain translations of the documents into German.
The quality of the translation was so poor that, after the materials were forwarded to the German Embassy in Kyiv, the diplomatic mission sent an official note of protest to the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on May 15, 2025, pointing out serious errors in the translation and noting Ukraine’s violation of its international obligations regarding the protection of the rights of foreign citizens.
A detailed analysis of the indictment revealed that the document did not specify a single concrete illegal act allegedly committed by Engelmann, did not identify any victims, and did not describe any specific damage, material or otherwise, resulting from the alleged actions.
A word from the freed journalist
After his release, Sergej Engelmann addressed the public with the following statement:
“I am convinced that my detention is connected to my investigation ‘Who ordered the smear campaign against Oleg Maltsev?’, which I published shortly before my arrest. As a journalist, I have witnessed the danger currently facing academic freedom in Ukraine. […] I, a journalist, was accused of membership in a paramilitary organization. For those unfamiliar with this issue, under Ukrainian law this is not considered a serious crime, but a politicized offense. I was held in a detention center for a year.”
Engelmann also emphasized:
“Now, along with four other women accused of participating in an illegal armed organization, I am free again. We are a dangerous gang, aren’t we? But do not think this is the end. As I sit here writing these lines, Ukrainian scientist Dr. Oleg Maltsev, who suffers from chronic illnesses, remains in custody because he is allegedly the ‘organizer’ of this illegal armed organization.”
Context of the Dr. Maltsev case
Engelmann’s release is the third significant victory for the defense in this high-profile case. On April 25, 2025, lawyer Olga Panchenko, who had been arrested under the same article as her client Dr. Oleg Maltsev, was released. On October 14, 2025, the Court of Appeals overturned the conviction of Kyrgyz citizen Kanykey T., whose “confession” had been used as key evidence against the scientist and his colleagues.
According to lawyer Alexander Babikov:
“The Court of Appeals heard our arguments regarding violations of the right to defense, violations of the European Convention, the first-instance court’s disregard of jurisdictional objections, and several other procedural breaches. […] The team’s meticulous and professional work has paid off. We are moving forward — toward victory and the release of the remaining defendants, with the full refutation of the fabricated charges.”
The Dr. Maltsev case has attracted the attention of international human rights organizations. Human Rights Without Frontiers prepared a report for the OSCE documenting violations committed by Ukrainian judges. The case has also been brought before the UN Human Rights Committee. The European Academy of Sciences of Ukraine has consistently stated that the criminal prosecution of its academician, Dr. Oleg Maltsev, is politically motivated and contradicts the principles of academic freedom. EUASU initiated appeals from members of the international academic community to the Ukrainian courts, calling for fairness and transparency in the case of Dr. Oleg Maltsev. It also sent a letter to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and established an international coalition called “Justice for Beliefs,” whose purpose is to remind the Ukrainian authorities that even under martial law, the criminal prosecution of citizens and their prolonged detention without alternatives based on their beliefs cannot be justified.
Sergej Engelmann’s release sets an important precedent for reviewing preventive measures applied to other defendants in the case. However, Ukrainian scientist Dr. Oleg Maltsev remains in custody under harsh conditions, despite suffering from chronic illnesses and despite the absence of substantial evidence of his guilt.
World of Martial Arts calls on the international community of journalists, human rights organizations, and all those concerned with press freedom and academic freedom to pay close attention to this case. We are convinced that the persecution is fabricated and requires an independent international investigation.
As Sergej Engelmann himself emphasized:
“This is not just my personal story. This is a struggle for press freedom, human rights, and academic freedom in Ukraine. […] The truth must come out.”
Additional information:
• Official statements by the UN and OSCE regarding the case are available upon request.
• Materials from Sergej Engelmann’s journalistic investigation are available on our publication’s website.
• All materials related to the case of scientist Dr. Oleg Maltsev are published on a resource intended for researchers, human rights advocates, journalists, and other interested parties.
• The international petition Demand Justice: Suspicion of Malicious Prosecution in the Dr. Maltsev Case is available on the Change.org platform.
