The Latvian authorities have confirmed their decision to expel former OVD-Info employee Maria Chashchilova from the country. Earlier this month, the State Security Service urged the Internal Affairs Ministry to bar the Russian lawyer from entering Latvia.
Chashchilova’s current whereabouts aren’t clear, though unnamed sources told Sota Media on Wednesday that she was in the process of being deported from Latvia “at that very moment.”
One of Chashchilova’s acquaintances told Novaya Gazeta Europe that Chashchilova received a letter just hours before she was arrested informing her that her Latvian residence permit had been revoked. She was also reportedly given the option to choose any non-E.U. country to which she would be deported.
For many years, Chashchilova worked at various human rights organizations, where she had access to sensitive information about individuals persecuted by Russian authorities. Last month, the investigative outlet iStories released a report revealing that Chashchilova has frequently lied about her biography, though journalists found no evidence that she has collaborated with the Russian state.
