A migration court in Stockholm has overturned a police decision to detain Russian citizens Semyon and Tatyana, who were recently detained during a tourist trip to Sweden. The court ordered both to be released immediately, according to a report by the Russian Antiwar Committee, The Insider reported.
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The court found no evidence in the case file constituting grounds for suspicion that Semyon and Tatyana had committed any crime. The ruling also said the Russians had cooperated with Swedish authorities and that police had failed to present convincing facts indicating that the couple had come to the country for purposes other than tourism.
“The mere fact of Russian citizenship and the fact that they speak Russian cannot be grounds for a detention decision,” the defense said in its complaint.
Police had insisted that Semyon and Tatyana posed a threat to Sweden’s internal security and might try to flee if released — arguments which the court found to be unsubstantiated.
The couple were detained on the morning of Aug. 6 while vacationing near the town of Furuvik. The Antiwar Committee previously told The Insider that Semyon and Tatyana had lived in Spain for the past five years and had come to Sweden as tourists. They were traveling with a tent, set up camp by the sea and went fishing.
A private home belonging to a person protected by the Swedish authorities was located near their campsite, something the tourists were not aware of, according to the Antiwar Committee. Security guards at the home called the police. Both the guards and law enforcement officers were reportedly drawn to the couple because they were speaking Russian and had two hiking walkie-talkies.
As The Insider previously reported, the Russians also could not clearly explain to the police why they had chosen that particular place to spend the night. They later told human rights advocates that they enjoy hiking and had decided to camp by the water.
After the detention, police ordered the couple deported, and Semyon and Tatyana were placed in a migration center. The Antiwar Committee said at the time that the decision to detain and deport the couple were based solely on three factors: their Russian accents, the walkie-talkies, and the tourists’ inability to convincingly explain their choice of campsite.
Margarita Kuchusheva, a consul with the Anti-War Committee, told The Insider that the case was not unprecedented:
“This is not the first case in which Sweden has recognized Russian citizens as a threat to national security. Unfortunately, anti-war Russians sometimes fall under these criteria as well. In this case, [they were] simply a pair of tourists who chose to go on a camping trip. Challenging such a status is extremely difficult, and it can seriously damage a person’s life, such as when one wants to apply for a visa.”
The Antiwar Committee added that Semyon (who works as a game developer) and Tatyana oppose Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, do humanitarian work, and help teenage emigres adapt to life abroad.
