Sofia Sapega’s father asks Lukashenko to pardon his daughter in video appeal

The father of Sofia Sapega, a Russian student who was arrested in Minsk alongside Belarusian opposition journalist Roman Protasevich, has appealed to President Alexander Lukashenko to pardon his daughter.

In a video message published by the news agency PrimaMedia, Andrey Sapega urges Lukashenko to show mercy, adding that “any sane person understands that she [Sofia Sapega] was in the wrong place with the wrong person.”

On May 23, the Belarusian authorities arrested journalist Roman Protasevich and his girlfriend, Russian citizen Sofia Sapega, after removing them from a Ryanair flight that was diverted to Minsk. The passenger plane, which was travelling from Athens to Vilnius, was forced to land in Belarus after the authorities reported an alleged bomb threat on board. Many European countries believe the Belarusian authorities hijacked the passenger plane in order to arrest Protasevich.

Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed Sofia Sapega’s arrest with Lukashenko at a meeting that took place just days after the incident. Putin then instructed the Foreign Ministry to follow Sapega’s case “closely.”

Sapega has been in custody in a Minsk pre-trial detention center since her arrest. The Belarusian authorities accuse her of organizing riots and violations of public order, in addition to inciting social enmity.

On May 31, Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei told Kommersant that while Sapega must stand trial in Belarus, there are “various options” as to what might happen to her afterward, including the possibility of a presidential pardon or transferring her to Russia to serve out her sentence.