Sophia Sapega, a Russian citizen who was convicted in Belarus, has agreed to be extradited to Russia. The Russian Embassy in Belarus reported that law enforcement agencies from both countries are working to resolve the formalities. The embassy stated that there were no complaints from Sophia regarding the conditions of her detention and her health. Russian diplomats continue to interact with the Belarusian side and stay in touch with Sophia’s relatives and lawyer.
Sophia was detained on May 23, 2021, as a result of the forced landing of a Ryanair plane. She was returning from a holiday in Greece with her boyfriend, Belarusian opposition journalist Roman Protasevich. Protasevich was included in the list of persons involved in terrorist activities while Sophia edited a telegram channel about Belarusian security forces. In May 2022, Sophia was sentenced to six years in prison. She was found guilty of deliberate actions aimed at inciting social hatred and discord, which entailed grave consequences. In June 2022, Sophia filed a petition for a pardon. However, in January 2023, it was announced that the Belarusian authorities refused to pardon her. In March 2023, Sophia was added to the list of those involved in terrorist activities.
Sofia Sapega
Photo: Leonid Shcheglov/BelTA/TASS
Moscow. 12th of April. INTERFAX.RU – Sophia Sapega, a citizen of the Russian Federation convicted in Belarus, agreed to be extradited to Russia, and now the law enforcement agencies of the two countries are working to resolve the formalities, the Russian Embassy in Belarus reported on Wednesday.
“On Monday, April 10 (as soon as the relevant permission was issued by the Belarusian authorities), our consul visited Sofya Sapega. During the meeting with the convicted Russian citizen, she received consent to be extradited to Russia for a possible serving of further punishment on the territory of the Russian Federation,” – informed the embassy.
“The next stage, including the technical details of the extradition procedure, is handled by Russian and Belarusian law enforcement agencies. As for the conditions of detention and the state of health of our citizen, there were no complaints from her in a conversation with the consul,” the message says.
The embassy noted that Russian diplomats continue to interact with the Belarusian side on the situation with Sapieha, stay in touch with relatives and a lawyer.
Case of Sofia Sapieha
Sapieha was detained on May 23, 2021 as a result of the forced landing of a Ryanair plane, on which she was returning from a holiday in Greece with her boyfriend, Belarusian opposition journalist Roman Protasevich. The Belarusian authorities, under the pretext of reporting a threat of a bombing, forced the plane to land at the airport in Minsk, where Sapieha and Protasevich were detained.
Protasevich was included in the list of persons involved in terrorist activities, accused in the case of riots in Belarus. Sapieha edited the telegram channel about the Belarusian security forces.
In May 2022, Sapieha was sentenced to six years in prison. She was found guilty of deliberate actions aimed at inciting social hatred and discord, which entailed grave consequences, as well as illegal collection and dissemination of information about private life, which caused harm to the rights, freedoms and legitimate interests of the victims.
The court also ruled to recover 167.5 thousand Belarusian rubles (about $65 thousand) from the defendant in favor of the victims. At the time the case was brought to court, there were 238 victims.
In June 2022, Sapieha filed a petition addressed to the President of Belarus for a pardon. In January 2023, it became known that the Belarusian authorities refused to pardon. In March 2023, Sapieha was added to the list of those involved in terrorist activities.
The case of Sofia Sapega, convicted in Belarus, has drawn international attention since her forced landing in Minsk in May 2021. Now, with her consent to extradition to Russia, the formalities are being resolved by law enforcement agencies of both countries. As this story continues to unfold, the Russian Embassy in Belarus will remain in contact with Sapega’s relatives and lawyer, monitoring the conditions of her detention and ensuring her rights are protected. The outcome of this case will have far-reaching implications for human rights and international law.