Media: Russian Alexey Moskalyov extradited from Belarus to Russia after he fled justice ahead of verdict in ‘army discreditation’ case

Russian national Alexey Moskalyov, who made headlines when he escaped house arrest ahead of the court verdict in his “Russian army discreditation” case and was later detained in Minsk, has been extradited to Russia, OVD-Info reports, citing a Belarusian human rights activist who attempted to visit his detention centre to see Moskalyov.

The news that the Russian man had been placed in the detention facility broke out on 7 April. The Russian Foreign Ministry then noted that Moskalyov was awaiting a deportation ruling.

Moskalyov was sentenced to two years in prison on 28 March. He was found guilty of “discrediting” the Russian army. However, reports emerged soon after that Moskalyov fled his house arrest several hours before the hearing. The Belarusian Interior Ministry later confirmed that the man had been detained in Minsk.

In early March, Moskalyov’s daughter Maria, who drew an anti-war picture in school, was placed in an orphanage. She wrote a letter to her father. “Hi Dad, I need you to stay healthy and calm. I’m okay, I love you so much and you should know that you did nothing wrong, I’ll always be on your side and I believe everything you do is right,” she wrote. Maria was moved to her mother’s place on 5 April.