Russian journalist Marina Ovsiannikova, who rose to fame after interrupting a newspaper of a Russian state channel five months ago with a poster against the offensive in Ukraine, was arrested on Wednesday for “discrediting” the army, her lawyer announced.
“We are currently with the investigators. An investigation has been opened” against Marina Ovsiannikova for “spreading false information” about the Russian army, lawyer Dmitri Zakhvatov told AFP. “She was arrested,” he said.
Already sentenced to several fines
Investigators must now decide whether Marina Ovsiannikova, the mother of two minor children, will remain in pretrial detention or remain free pending trial, according to the same source.
Since the end of July, the Russian journalist has already been sentenced twice to fines for having “discredited” the Russian army, in particular on the basis of messages critical of the offensive in Ukraine published on social networks. Two convictions less than six months apart pave the way for a criminal case, with potentially much more serious legal consequences.
An intervention that had gone around the world
Marina Ovsiannikova rose to fame in mid-March after appearing, in full newspaper, on the set of a pro-Kremlin television channel for which she worked. During her intervention, she carried a poster denouncing the offensive in Ukraine and the “propaganda” of the media controlled by power.
Many people had praised his courage then. However, she is not unanimous within the Russian opposition, some criticize her for her years of work for the Pervy Kanal channel, the spokesman for the Kremlin. After working several months abroad, notably for the German newspaper die Welt, she returned to Russia in early July to settle a dispute over the custody of her children.
Russia, which for many years has been determined to repress voices critical of the Kremlin, has considerably toughened its criminal arsenal against those who denounce Russian power since the beginning of the assault on Ukraine.
Source: BFM TV
