Editor linked to poisoning exposé arrested in Russia
THE editor of the investigative website that uncovered the identity of two Russian suspects behind the Salisbury poisonings has been arrested in the latest crackdown on independent media.
Roman Dobrokhotov, who worked for Insider, a Russian-language website, was detained during a raid on his Moscow flat early yesterday morning.
“Looks like a raid. Police are knocking,” he tweeted yesterday.
His wife reported the raids to the OVD-INFO legal aid group. Both phones became unavailable shortly afterwards.
Pravozashchita Otkrytki, a legal aid group, said police seized mobile phones and laptops during the raid, as well as Mr Dobrokhotov’s passport.
Russian state media reported that Mr Dobrokhotov had been detained in connection with a defamation complaint brought by a Dutch blogger called Maxim van der Werff.
A lawyer for the Dutch journalist said the case related to allegations that her client cooperated with the Russian security services in spreading misinformation about the shooting down of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 over Ukraine in 2014.
Mr Dobrokhotov’s arrest came hours before he was due to fly out of the country but he was released last night. A week earlier Russian authorities designated the Insider, which is registered in Latvia, as a “foreign agent”.
The label subjects outlets to additional scrutiny from the authorities and compels them to preface all publications with a disclaimer.
Several independent media outlets have been saddled with the title in recent months, including Latvianbased
Meduza, which appealed for donation earlier this year after advertisers pulled out.
The Insider specialises in investigations into the Russian elite. It partnered with the British investigative group Bellingcat for a series of reports on the poisonings of Sergei Skripal, a former spy, and Alexei Navalny, a Russian opposition leader.
Earlier this week Russian authorities blocked about 50 websites linked to Mr Navalny, who is serving a two and a half year prison sentence.