Ex-“DPR” Defense Minister Igor Strelkov detained, faces extremism charges, media report

Law enforcement officers have detained the former “Minister of Defense” of the so-called “DPR” (Donetsk People's Republic), Igor Strelkov in Moscow, reports RBC, citing two sources in law enforcement. The report was confirmed by Strelkov's lawyer.

Law enforcement officers took Strelkov from his home around noon. Investigative Committee officers are searching his apartment.

According to preliminary information, the arrest was made based on a report by a former member of the private military company Wagner. Strelkov has been charged with extremism.

Miroslava Reginskaya, the wife of Igor Strelkov, shared the following account of his arrest:

“Today, at around 11:30, officers of the Investigative Committee arrived. I wasn't at home at that time. Shortly after, according to the concierge, they took my spouse by the arms and drove him away in an unknown direction. From friends, I managed to find out that my husband has been charged under Article 282 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (extremism). I have no information about his whereabouts, and he hasn't contacted me.”

Igor Strelkov, whose real name is Igor Girkin, is a Russian military, state, and political figure, as well as a publicist. He was a member of the Russian FSB (Federal Security Service) from 1996 to 2013 and played a major role in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic. He was found responsible by the Hague District Court for the destruction of the Malaysian Boeing and the murder of 298 people on board, for which he was sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment in the Netherlands.