Russia hands four journalists 5.5 years each in Navalny “extremism” case

The first to be detained was SotaVision journalist Antonina Favorskaya, who was arrested on March 17, 2024, after visiting Alexei Navalny’s grave at Borisovskoye Cemetery. According to a statement from the Moscow court’s press office, Favorskaya was prosecuted for “collecting material, producing and editing videos and publications for [the] ACF.” As reported by the independent outlet Mediazona, during one of the hearings, Favorskaya said that she was being tried “for an article about how [Russia’s] Federal Penitentiary Service tortured Alexei Navalny.” In a later letter to colleagues, she also said she was being prosecuted for helping organize Navalny’s funeral.

In April 2024, the court also arrested Konstantin Gabov, a producer with the international news agency Reuters. According to the prosecution, Gabov “participated in the preparations of photo and video materials” for the NavalnyLIVE YouTube channel. Shortly after, Sergey Karelin, a freelance video journalist who had done work for the Associated Press (AP) and the German public broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW), was also detained.

In June 2024, SotaVision journalist Artyom Kriger was placed in pretrial detention on similar charges stemming from his alleged collaboration with the ACF.