The Belarusian exchanged for Poczobut did not appear at his trial in Poland

The court session of the Białystok District Court was supposed to begin on September 16, but it was postponed because the defendant did not appear, writes "Belsat".

However, the Belarusian accused of espionage had previously given testimony and agreed to the continuation of the trial in his absence, and also provided a contact email address for the summons. But the court decided that this was not enough for a hearing in his absence and will once again send a summons to the Embassy of Belarus in Poland with a request to personally hand it to the accused.

Prosecutor Leszek Bożek reported that the accused is currently not in Poland due to a prisoner exchange with Belarus. He refused to comment on the charges, but said that "the actions of the accused were primarily directed against the Belarusian democratic opposition in Poland."

The prosecutor will file a motion to classify the testimony of the accused, including due to concerns for the well-being of witnesses whose data the accused collected.

"This case is well-known, the accused was exchanged for Mr. (Andrzej) Poczobut. This was a matter of state importance, and it was recognized as more significant," stated the accused's lawyer Michał Korsak.

The lawyer also stated that he last saw the defendant in April, when he was in custody in Białystok.

He added that the man had previously testified in the case and agreed to appear at any time, but now the lawyer assessed the defendant's appearance as doubtful due to "the difficulties of the charges, his previous conduct, and what he committed."

As a result of the prisoner exchange on April 28, Andrzej Poczobut, two Poles, and two Moldovans were released from Belarus, while from the Polish side, five citizens of Belarus, Russia, and other CIS states were exchanged.

Among the individuals handed over to the Belarusian side from the beginning were several people whose names were kept secret and who performed "especially important tasks in the interests of national security."

One of them was 33-year-old Belarusian citizen Uladzislau Nadziejka, who was detained in 2025 on charges of espionage for a foreign intelligence service.

It was then reported that the man was a participant in the Białystok 'Paspalitae Rušennie' (Possumilitia) banner, and his name was previously mentioned by the KGB of Belarus in connection with the "extremist formation" "Belarusian Grenadier Banner."

In Poland, Nadziejka was engaged in passenger transportation as a sole proprietor, which coincided with media reports about the arrest of a taxi driver-activist who might have been involved in a KGB spy network in Europe.

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