Journalist Vladimir Kara-Murza was suspected of treason

This is reported by " Izvestia " with reference to its own sources.

Vladimir Kara-Murza, who is already in a pre- trial detention center in the case of "discrediting the army", which involves up to 10 years in prison, previously served as vice president of the Free Russia Foundation *. In Russia, this organization was recognized as " undesirable ". In 2021, Kara-Murza stepped down from his post in the fund.

“However, according to available information, evidence has appeared at the disposal of the ICR investigators that the journalist gave advice to employees of foreign special services, while continuing to work in the interests of an undesirable organization,” Izvestia said in a statement.

Earlier it was reported that Kara-Murza was the director of documentaries about the disgraced priest Georgy Edelstein , about Soviet dissidents "They chose freedom", "Nemtsov", the author of many publications in Russian and foreign media. He was also one of the initiators of the adoption of the "Magnitsky laws" in the West. These pacts provide for personal sanctions for Russian security officials, oligarchs and corrupt officials involved in the death of human rights activist Sergei Magnitsky , who died in custody without proper medical care.

The activity of Kara-Murza** in promoting the idea of personal sanctions caused strong irritation in certain circles in the Russian Federation. In 2015 and 2017, there were two assassination attempts on Kara-Murza, and he miraculously survived. At the same time, in the same 2015, the closest associate and godfather of one of the children of Kara-Murza, Boris Nemtsov , was shot near the walls of the Kremlin .

Investigators found that journalist Kara-Murza had been secretly followed by members of the Russian security services for several months on his travels, including those who followed opposition politician Alexei Navalny *** on the eve of his poisoning.

The sanction of the article on treason provides for punishment of up to 20 years in prison. Earlier, the ex-journalist of Vedomosti and Kommersant Ivan Safronov was convicted under the same article. The reporter, who pleaded not guilty, was sentenced to 22 years in prison.

The reason for initiating the first criminal case against Kara-Murza was his speech on March 15 in the House of Representatives of the State of Arizona (USA), where he spoke about the actions of the RF Armed Forces in the Donbass. The security forces accused the journalist of spreading fake news about the army and on April 22 of this year they sent him to a pre-trial detention center. On the same day, the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation included him in the register of individuals-foreign agents .

*Recognized in the Russian Federation as an “undesirable organization”.

** Entered by the Ministry of Justice into the register of media-foreign agents.

*** Entered in the register of Rosfinmonitoring as a person prone to extremism or terrorism.