Hanne (26) led the mission when the Wagner defector fled to Norway

Lieutenant Hanne Beverli (26) was the commander on duty at the Pasvik border station when the Russian mercenary Andrej Medvedev fled across the ice to Norway on the night of Friday.

– I had gone to bed and was sleeping well when our analysis and command center called me as the commander on duty, says Beverli to TV 2.

Run down the stairs

The clear message caused her to wake up suddenly: As a guard, the second-in-command in the Pasvik company had to come to the central immediately.

– I get dressed quickly and run down the stairs to them. There, a message has been received via the police about a possible border crossing from Russia to Norway. The Russian border guard has found tracks leading towards the Norwegian border, says the lieutenant.

All the border hunters at the Pasvik border station were then woken up, she continues.

Woke up the whole station

– I wake up the whole station, all the soldiers who are sleeping. They get ready the same way I do. They hurry up, get dressed and get ready for me for a situation update, says Beverli.

The mission that then followed was to initiate patrols.

– They will monitor a tee that I give them, a piece of area. I have been given a boundary marker that they assume the crossing has taken place, and then I give the patrols an area to search. They do this both on foot and in vehicles, she says.

Followed extra carefully

In addition to the hunters from the border station starting their patrols, Beverli alerted other units monitoring the border line, and asked them to pay extra close attention.

All eyes were directed towards the relevant area where the border crossing was supposed to have taken place. The Norwegian-Russian border runs through Svanevatn in Pasvikelva.

– Those who are out on patrol and searching receive continuous situational updates along the way, such as how far away the police are and what they are looking for, says Beverli.

Followed footsteps

The only thing the border hunters knew at this point was that an unidentified human was wandering outside in the winter night.

Andrej Medvedev is now in custody in Oslo, charged with illegal border crossing from Russia to Norway.

She describes the area where the Russian mercenary crossed the border as follows:

– The border runs in the river, and the area where the crossing takes place is naturally over the ice. This area is very open, in the middle of the thickest part of the river.

According to the lieutenant, who has in-depth knowledge of this area, there are several hundred meters to cross the river. The winter conditions made the job easier for the border hunters, as they could follow the tracks in the snow and did not have to wait for dog patrols.

– The ice is thick and safe, but there is also a lot of snow, so it is difficult to move quickly. It is slippery and hard to walk, says the lieutenant.

Help wanted

A police patrol and a police task leader had also arrived at the switchboard, working with her while she led the military mission.

– After we observe the perpetrator, and my patrols make an arrest, this patrol from the police also moves out and assists in the arrest, so that everything happens safely and responsibly, says Hanne Beverli to TV 2.

The defector whom the border hunters apprehended did not have hostile intentions, but wanted help.

The special mission meant that she and the other border hunters didn’t get any sleep that night, although it took less than an hour for the apprehension to happen.

– Although the effort went very quickly, we continued throughout the night. We are continuing the search and preparedness, in case there are more people who have crossed or may cross. It was a hectic night, and we weren’t done with the situation until well into the morning the next day, she says.

As she directed the mission from the analysis and command center, she envisioned the fresh frontier hunters she had sent out on patrol.

– We always have soldiers in training, who are learning this for the first time. Not all conscripts who are on duty get to experience actually apprehending a perpetrator who has crossed the border, says Beverli.

“Sharp incident”

Michael Spanne Rozmara, commander of the Garrison in Sør-Varanger (GSV), praises his crews for how they resolved the defection incident.

– We had a quota change early in January, so they actually took over the assignment two days before, from the previous quota. They get a “sharp incident” right in their lap and solve it in an exemplary manner. It is very reassuring as a boss to be allowed to lead such a department, says Rozmara to TV 2.

Like police chief Ellen Kathrine Hætta, Rozmara is also concerned that people on the Norwegian side have free access to the border line.

– We defend our values, and the values ​​are also freedom of movement. We have full freedom of movement in Norway, and that is something we should be proud of. That is what we are helping to protect, but it also means that we are protecting an area where we have traffic and buildings where other countries have closed down, built fences and created buffer zones, says the GSV chief.

The lieutenant in the Pasvik company says that the security situation in the world makes the job the border hunters do feel extra important.

– Now it has just happened, and it can happen again. Considering the situation in the world, and for those who live in Russia, it is not inconceivable that there are people who want to cross the border now. We have to be aware of that at all times, says Hanne Beverli to TV 2.