Maria Ponomarenko, reporter at an independent Russian news outlet RusNews, was detained in St. Petersburg under Russia’s “fake news” law, RusNews informed on Telegram.
The new iteration of the so-called “fake news” law criminalises “public dissemination of false information” about the Russian army.
Police filed criminal charges against the reporter for the March 17 publication on the RusNews Telegram channel about civilians hiding in the Mariupol theatre that was bombed by Russian forces. The outlet’s Telegram channel has about 1,600 subscribers.
Ponomarenko will be in police custody for 48 hours. On April 25, a St. Petersburg court will choose a measure of restraint for the Russian reporter.
Earlier, a St. Petersburg court arrested local artist Sasha Skochilenko until May 31 under the “fake news” law. The artist is suspected of replacing price tags at supermarkets with information about civilians killed in the Mariupol theatre bombing. She faces up to 10 years in prison.