Overview
- A Moscow court ordered Novaya Gazeta investigative journalist Oleg Roldugin into pre-trial detention until May 10 on a charge tied to alleged misuse of personal data.
- Police searched the paper’s Moscow newsroom for more than 12 hours after Thursday’s raid, with masked officers barring lawyers and keeping staff inside during the sweep.
- The Interior Ministry says a group used personal information to prepare articles and online posts that cast Russians in a negative light, citing Criminal Code Article 272.1.
- State outlets reported that investigators are also checking for links to Latvia-based Novaya Gazeta Europe, which Russia banned as an “undesirable” organization in 2023.
- The raid coincided with the Supreme Court branding the rights group Memorial “extremist,” and drew condemnation from press freedom groups and the United States as part of a wider crackdown since 2022.