A Sochi resident Ekaterina Kharebava, convicted on charges of spying for Georgia, is a political prisoner and should be released immediately, says the statement of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial".
The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on March 24, the appellate instance of the Supreme Court of Russia upheld the verdict passed by the Krasnodar Territorial Court on November 14, 2014, to Ekaterina Kharebava – a saleswoman from Sochi who was found guilty of espionage (Article 276 of the Russian Criminal Code) and sentenced to six years in a general-security colony.
According to investigators, in 2008, on the eve of the Abkhaz-Georgian conflict, Ekaterina Kharebava saw in Sochi the movement of troops and told about it to the Georgia's military representative, by which she caused damage to Russia's the interests.
Today, the HRC "Memorial" has issued a statement, saying that there is no evidence that the "message about the movement of troops was sent by Kharebava under the instruction of a foreign intelligence service."
Rights defenders have also stressed that Ekaterina's actions are "not covered by the definition of espionage" and that she is "prosecuted for her legitimate actions, which are not subject to criminal punishment." The political nature of the case can be seen from the fact that the case against Kharebava "was opened four years after the committed act," says the HRC "Memorial".