A Japanese man has been sentenced to seven years in prison and fined 21,000 Belarusian rubles (around $6,400) after being found guilty of espionage in Belarus. The court in Minsk ruled that the man was involved in spying activities from 2018 to 2024. He was arrested in July 2023 for allegedly taking more than 9,000 photographs of the border area between Belarus and Ukraine and sending them to Japan.
The trial, which started in January, was held behind closed doors. The ruling was officially delivered on Friday. The Japanese consulate in Belarus confirmed the verdict but did not provide further details.
The Background: Who Was This Man?
The convicted man worked as a Japanese language teacher at an educational institution in Gomel, a city in southeastern Belarus. His arrest made headlines after a Belarusian state-run broadcaster aired a program in September, showing him in custody and claiming he had confessed to the crime.
Authorities in Belarus accused him of collecting and sharing sensitive information related to the border region. However, Japan strongly protested against his treatment, particularly criticizing the airing of the confession, stating that it was unfair and could have been forced. The Japanese government also expressed concerns on humanitarian grounds.
The Trial and the Verdict
After his arrest, the teacher was kept in detention while Belarusian authorities conducted an investigation. Since espionage cases involve national security, the trial was conducted in secret, with little information made public. The first hearing took place in January, and after several months, the court declared him guilty.
The ruling was finalized on Friday, sentencing him to seven years in prison along with a financial penalty. The Japanese government attempted to intervene diplomatically, but their protests did not alter the outcome.
Japan has continued to express its disappointment over how the case was handled, highlighting concerns about the fairness of the proceedings and the conditions of his detention. However, Belarus has maintained its stance, asserting that the conviction was based on concrete evidence.
For now, the man remains imprisoned in Belarus, serving his sentence far from home.
