The Russian woman Sofya Sapega, detained in Belarus, has been finally charged. She faces six years in prison

The Investigative Committee of Belarus has charged a Russian woman Sofya Sapega, who was detained in May in Minsk after an emergency landing of a Ryanair plane, with a final charge of inciting hatred (part 3 of Article 130 of the Criminal Code). About it informs BBC Russian service citing sources.

The Russian woman was removed from the flight together with the journalist, founder of the Belarusian opposition Telegram channel Nexta Roman Protasevich. He was accused of inciting social hatred, organizing riots and organizing actions that grossly violate public order.

Sapieha’s case will soon be brought to court in Minsk. She faces six years in prison – this is the minimum term under this article, taking into account the pre-trial agreement concluded by Sapieha with the investigation.

According to BBC sources, Sapega is in a serious psychological state, she is depressed and confused, does not sleep at night. Only after the verdict of the court will Sapega be able to extradite to Russia.

Since October 20, she was under house arrest in the Belarusian city of Lida, in the apartment of her parents, where she is registered. At the same time, for several months the parents did not have the opportunity to contact her. On Friday, December 3, the girl was summoned to the Investigative Committee.

Let us remind you that the Belarusian authorities carried out a whole special operation to arrest the couple, which caused an international scandal. On May 23, a Ryanair plane en route Athens – Vilnius landed at the Minsk airport after receiving a message about mining. On the instructions of Alexander Lukashenko, a fighter was raised to escort the passenger plane. Lukashenka personally gave the command to land the plane.

On August 10, Sophia Sapega appeared on the air of the show “This is Other” on the state TV channel “Belarus 1”. In an interview, the Russian woman spoke about the events of May 23. According to Sapieha, “from the conversations with Roman it was concluded” that “someone from the working collective” of Protasevich was involved in the landing of the Ryanair plane in Minsk. She added that “no KGB officers on the plane did anything to us.” “They weren’t there,” the Russian woman emphasized.

Formerly Vice reportedthat the Belarusian opposition leader Roman Protasevich was under surveillance while still in Greece, from where he flew by Ryanair. This information was provided to the publication by a source in the Greek National Intelligence Service. According to this information, at least three operatives followed Protasevich throughout his vacation.

The Greek intelligence services examined the surveillance footage from the hotels and the airport and concluded that the journalist was under surveillance, including during a trip to Crete with his girlfriend Sophia Sapega. It was noted that the operatives acted in the interests of Minsk, while they allegedly had Russian passports. They confirmed the fact that Protasevich was on board the Athens-Vilnius flight, after which the plane was landed at the Minsk airport.

In June, Roman Protasevich and Sofya Sapega were transferred from the KGB pre-trial detention center to house arrest. The Investigative Committee of Belarus reported that the defendants made a deal with the investigation and are making confessions. On August 9, Alexander Lukashenko, commenting on the Protasevich case, saidthat “he is now practically at large.”