Documents released by hackers suggest Lukashenko may not have taken PCR tests before meetings with Putin
A group of Belarusian hackers claiming to have gained access to a database belonging to their country's presidential medical center have released what they say are the results of PCR tests taken by President Alexander Lukashenko and his son Nikolai.
The hackers, who call themselves the United Resistance Center, posted more than 70 electronic copies of PCR test certificates with the names Alexander and Nikolai Lukashenko on Telegram.
The independent Belarusian outlet Zerkalo deemed the documents genuine, noting that each file contains a QR code that leads to PDF copies of the certificates on the presidential medical center’s official site.
The test certificates cover the period from April 2021 to December 2022, and almost all of them were issued shortly before Lukashenko met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Most of Lukashenko’s test certificates are accompanied by tests issued to his son, suggesting that Nikolai joined his father's meetings with Putin in many cases when his participation wasn't publicly announced.
The independent outlets Current Time, Mediazona Belarus, and Zerkalo noted that the PCR tests contain a number of discrepancies. In particular, Alexander Lukashenko’s tests variously show two different passport numbers, while Nikolai Lukashenko’s show three, one of which also appears on his father’s certificates.
In addition, Alexander and Nikolai Lukashenko frequently received their certificates on the same day and at the same time. In some cases, tests from different dates contain the exact same times of day. Many of the documents indicate that a test was taken at the same time that the certificate was issued, despite the fact that it takes time for PCR test results to become available. In at least one case, a certificate’s issue date was earlier than the indicated testing date.
