MOSCOW, June 16 (RIA Novosti) – Israeli’s embassy in Russia denied reports on Sunday that the Israeli ambassador was robbed in St. Petersburg.
Russia’s Interior Ministry reported on Sunday that an unidentified person had stolen a purse with money and documents from the Israeli ambassador to Russia.
“On June 15, the Israeli ambassador turned to the police with a statement that at 12:30 p.m. on the Palace Embankment, an unidentified person stole his purse that contained 12,000 rubles ($400), a diplomatic card and a bank card, from which unidentified persons later withdrew over $2,500,” the ministry said.
The Israeli embassy said, however, the money and documents were stolen from one of the embassy’s first secretaries, not from the ambassador.
“Israel’s ambassador to Russia in the past three years has been Mrs. Dorit Golender, a person who is well-known here and who takes many efforts to establish and expand ties between the two countries in all spheres, cultural and economic,” Alex Kagalsky, the embassy’s adviser on media relations, told RIA Novosti, adding Golender had not been in St. Petersburg on Saturday.
“One of the embassy’s first secretaries, indeed, had his purse stolen on Palace Square [in St. Petersburg],” he said.
Russia’s Interior Ministry said the police used the data reported by the person who had his purse stolen and was now verifying this information.
