Russia sentences Pussy Riot activist to 6 years in absentia for Ukraine war fakes
- Lyusya Shtein found guilty of spreading ‘war fakes’ over 2022 post on X that accused Russian soldiers captured by Ukraine of bombing foreign cities
- Moscow court said Shtein, believed to have settled in Iceland, would begin sentence once she could be extradited to Russia
A Russian court sentenced Lyusya Shtein, a member of Pussy Riot and a former municipal deputy in Moscow, to six years in prison in absentia for anti-war social media posts, the court’s press service said on Wednesday.
Shtein, 27, was found guilty of spreading “war fakes” in connection with a March 2022 post on X, in which she accused Russian soldiers captured by Ukraine of “bombing foreign cities and killing people”, Russian independent news outlet Mediazona reported.
Those found guilty of spreading “false information” about Russia’s army risk 10 years in prison.
Pussy Riot, a feminist opposition group, rose to prominence by donning balaclavas and storming into Moscow’s Christ the Saviour Cathedral in February 2012, shouting out a song against Putin. Many of its members have been jailed in Russia.
