Sofia Sapega Sentenced to Six Years in Prison

The sentence was passed in the Hrodna Regional Court.

On 6 May, the Hrodna Regional Court pronounced the sentence on the Russian citizen Sofia Sapega, a friend of Raman Protasevich. She was sentenced to six years' imprisonment, reports HRC Viasna.

The court sentenced Sofia Sapega to six years in prison. She will serve it in a general regime penal colony. She was taken into custody in the courtroom.

The trial started on 28 March and was held behind closed doors.

Given the closed trial, the participants - the prosecution and the defence - did not comment on the proceedings. Relatives and friends also had no information during the trial.

Sofia Sapega was charged under seven articles of the Criminal Code of Belarus.

She could face up to 12 years of imprisonment under the toughest of the articles. However, as noted by the Prosecutor General of Belarus, during the preliminary investigation "the defendant has performed the obligations stipulated in the pre-trial agreement on cooperation. In this regard, the penalty provided by the criminal law may be halved.

We shall remind you that Sofia Sapega was detained together with the former editor-in-chief of NEXTA TV-channel, Raman Protasevich, at Minsk airport last May 23 after the Belarusian authorities had grounded the plane of the Ryanair airline, flying from Athens to Vilnius. The couple was on the way back from holiday.

She was accused of administering the Black Book of Belarus Telegram channel, which publishes the personal data of law enforcement officers. Last 25 May, state channels showed a video in which Sapega admitted she was the editor of the Black Book of Belarus.

After her detention, the girl agreed to cooperate with the investigation and appeared on the state TV channel, and wrote a clemency petition to Lukashenka.

She spent some time in pre-trial detention facility. Since last October, she has been under house arrest in Lida, in the appartment of her parents, where she is registered.