Norway lacks evidence to back ‘espionage’ charges against detained Russian

There is no specific evidence to prove that the Russian national detained in Norway last week illegally collected information, the Russian’s lawyer Hege Aakre told the Verdens Gang newspaper on Monday.

"He was attending a work-related seminar, there were no other reasons but work. I can say that his work is related to the conference that he attended in Oslo," she said.

"They think there are some suspicions observations but apart from that, there is no specific evidence to prove that he was collecting information. They were on the alert and reported everything that seemed suspicious to them but he gave a good clarification of what could have happened," the lawyer said, adding that "if it is so, then he hasn’t committed any crime."

On Sunday, the Russian embassy in Norway confirmed the detention of a Russian national at Oslo airport. The embassy said on Facebook that the detained was being provided with the necessary consular assistance and his rights and interests were being protected. At the same time, the embassy believes that the Russian was detained based on far-fetched allegations.

According to the Verdens Gang newspaper, the Russian is 51 years old. His lawyer told the paper that her client could not understand the reasons for his detention and considered it all to be a misunderstanding. The lawyer added that some electronic devices had been seized from the man, though she did not specify what kind of devices they were.

Meanwhile, the Norwegian News Agency reported that the detained was cooperating with the investigation.