Belarusian Christian Democracy activist suspected of spying - KGB
MINSK. Nov 13 (Interfax) - Andrei Gaidukov, an activist of the nascent party Belarusian Christian Democracy (BCD), is suspected of collecting information for a foreign intelligence service, the Belarusian State Security Committee (KGB) told Interfax on Tuesday.
"The Belarusian KGB prevented unlawful activity of Belarusian citizen Gaidukov, who collected political and economic information under a foreign intelligence service's instructions," he said.
Gaidukov was detained by KGB officers while making a dead drop with information sought by foreign special services, it said.
A criminal case on high treason charges (Belarusian Criminal Code Article 356, Part 1) has been opened against Gaidukov, and a set of search and investigative measures has been launched to reveal other counts of his possible unlawful activities, the KGB said.
Gaidukov has been put into the KGB detention center, it said.
If found guilty, Gaidukov may face from 7 to 15 years in prison.
Interfax reported earlier citing the BCD press service that Gaidukov, a resident of Novopolotsk, the Vitebsk region, was apprehended by KGB officers in Vitebsk, after which another BCD activist, Ilya Bogdanov, was apprehended in Polotsk and later released under a written pledge not to disclose the circumstances of his detention.
"Gaiduikov has been delivered to the KGB detention center in Minsk," the BCD press service said.