Belarus confirms detention of Russia’s Alexey Moskalyov who escaped house arrest ahead of court verdict for 'fakes about army'

The Belarusian Interior Ministry has confirmed that Alexey Moskalyov, resident of Russia’s Tula region who was sentenced to two years behind bars for “discrediting the Russian army” was detained in Belarus, RBC reports.

“Moskalyov was detained by police officers at the request of the Russian police,” the Belarusian ministry said in a statement.

Lawyer Dmitry Zakharov broke the news that Moskalyov was detained after he fled his house while being under house arrest, fearing that his conviction was a done deal, earlier. However, Zakharov stressed that at the time he was not able to confirm this information.

Moskalyov was sentenced to two years in prison for “discrediting the Russian army” in social media posts. The Russian fled his house several hours before the court ruling.

The man is a single father who raises his 12-year-old daughter Maria. She was sent to an orphanage in early March. She earlier wrote a letter to her dad. The daughter had to sit through a conversation with FSB officers after she drew an anti-war picture in school.