More than 450 Russians are held in prisons and pre-trial detention centers in Belarus

Thus, the Russian Embassy in Minsk responded to the corresponding request from RBC. The diplomatic mission clarified that the statistics are current as of July 1, 2021.

11 Russians appear in cases related to mass protests in Belarus that took place in August 2020. Seven of them have already been convicted and are serving sentences. Three more citizens of the Russian Federation are awaiting a court decision.

23-year-old Sofia Sapega, Roman Protasevich's girlfriend, is awaiting sentencing. Her case was transferred to the Grodno Regional Court. The defendant faces up to 6 years in prison, and now she is under house arrest. The Russian woman was detained along with Protasevich, landing a Ryanair plane flying along the Athens-Vilnius route, citing information about the threat to the safety of passengers. A fugitive Minsk airport dispatcher said that the landing was led by a KGB officer.