site.btaRussia Sentenced Bulgarian Woman to Three Years for Posting about Crimea as "Sovereign Ukrainian Territory", Arrests Student for Fraud

A Bulgarian citizen has been sentenced to three years in prison in Russia, while another has been detained for two months, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Georg Georgiev reported in response to questions from MPs Stella Nikolova and Ivaylo Mirchev from the opposition Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria.

A Bulgarian woman was sentenced in Russia on September 9 to three years imprisonment in a general regime penal colony on charges of "public justification of terrorism." She was convicted for a social media post where she said that Crimea was sovereign Ukrainian territory illegally occupied by Russia, the Minister explained. The woman holds dual citizenship—Bulgarian and Russian—and resides permanently in Russia, Georgiev added.

The Bulgarian Embassy in Moscow was notified of her detention by her sister. The Embassy immediately took steps to clarify the circumstances and urgently sent a verbal note to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs requesting information on the case. In May 2025, a brief official response from the Russian side was received, confirming the detention. From the moment of detention until the sentencing by the court, the Bulgarian citizen did not seek consular assistance, the Minister added.

The Bulgarian Foreign Ministry regards this case as part of systematic and deliberate actions by the Russian state apparatus aimed at suppressing freedom of speech, exerting total repressive control over public information, restricting access to alternative viewpoints, and imposing disproportionate criminal penalties for opinions contradicting official Russian propaganda—especially in the context of Russia’s full-scale military aggression against Ukraine, the Minister noted. The MFA continues to monitor the situation and remains ready to provide necessary assistance and consular protection.

In the second case, a Bulgarian student in Moscow was held for two months on charges of fraud, Georgiev stated. The Embassy maintains constant contact with her mother and lawyer. The head of the consular service attended the court hearing held on September 26, where the court ordered pretrial detention for two months. The Foreign Ministry continues to follow the case, the Minister explained.

Regarding a third case, the Minister indicated that a check was made in the terrorist and extremist registry maintained by Rosfinmonitoring, confirming the presence of a record for a third Bulgarian citizen. Being listed does not automatically mean the individual is detained or imprisoned. The Embassy has not received any official notification from Russian authorities, nor from relatives or acquaintances of the Bulgarian citizen in question, Georgiev added.