Zeltser’s secretary about prison term: “It’s a year stricken from my life”
- 25.02.2009, 15:14
Russian citizen Vladlena Funk, thrown into Belarusian prison together with US national Emanuel Zeltser, is going to leave prison.
Interfax-Zapad agency has learnt this from Vladlena Funk’s lawyer Zmitser Harachka.
“A term of punishment to my client expires on March 12. I visited her in the penal colony yesterday. V. Bruskova is going to leave prison,” he said.
According to the lawyer, V. Bruskova was handed in a leaving checklist.
“She had a conversation with the administration of the colony, where she was said after the release she must register in one the militia departments in Minsk, be fingerprinted and leave Belarus within a given time.”
Zmitser Harachka told that Vladlena Funk called the time, she spent under arrest in the KGB remand prison in Minsk and penal colony in Homel “a year, stricken from life”. At the same time the lawyer noted that V. Bruskova hadn’t hade “any problems with the administration of the correctional facility” during serving of her term of punishment in a women’s correctional colony in Homel.
As it was reported earlier, Vladlena Funk, transferred to the correctional facility in November 2008, sews quilted jackets.
Zmitser Harachka said last week he visited US citizen Emanuel Zeltser, convicted for commercial espionage with Vladlena Funk.
“He is still at prison hospital. The state of his health hasn’t changed,” the lawyer said.
It should be reminded that US citizen Emanuel Zeltser and his secretary Russian citizen Vladlena Funk (Bruskova), were detained in Minsk on March 12, 2008. They were charged with gathering commercial information and use of fake documents. On August 11, 2008, the Minsk City Court sentenced Emanuel Zeltser to 3 years in a minimum security penal colony, and Vladlena Funk – to 1 year of imprisonment.
E. Zeltser serves punishment in correctional facility #15 in Mahilou, Funk – in women’s penal colony #4 in Homel.
On October 31, the Supreme Court of Belarus upheld the verdict. All court trials were held behind the closed doors. The US Department of States continues insisting on release of Emanuel Zeltser on humanitarian grounds in connection with the hard health conditions of the prisoner.
On February 11 six months have passed since a judgement was delivered to Emanuel Zeltser.