RUSSIAN TV journalist Marina Ovsyannikova, famous for staging an on-air protest against Russia's war in Ukraine, confirmed she had escaped house arrest over charges of spreading fake news again, saying she had no case to answer.
"I consider myself completely innocent, and since our state refuses to comply with its own laws, I refuse to comply with the measure of restraint imposed on me as of 30 September 2022 and release myself from it," she said on Telegram.
Her lawyer said she was due to turn up to a hearing at 10:00 Moscow time (0700 GMT) at a Moscow district court, but that investigators had failed to establish her whereabouts.
Ovsyannikova, 44, was given two months' house arrest in August over a protest in July when she stood on a river embankment opposite the Kremlin and held up a poster calling President Vladimir Putin a murderer and his soldiers fascists.
She faced a sentence of up to 10 years in prison if found guilty of the charge of spreading fake news about Russia's armed forces.
Her house arrest was due to last until Oct. 9, but the state-run news outlet Russia Today reported on Saturday that she had fled along with her 11-year-old daughter, and that her whereabouts were unknown.
How she left and where she went are still unclear, but on Monday, her name could be seen on the interior ministry's online list of fugitives from justice, accompanied by a photo.
In Wednesday's statement on her Telegram social media feed, she confirmed her escape, criticising the article of the criminal code being used to prosecute her and saying she was being persecuted "for telling the truth".
Russia passed new laws against discrediting or distributing "deliberately false information" about the armed forces on March 4, eight days after invading Ukraine.
Ovsyannikova came to international prominence later in March by walking out in front of studio cameras during an evening news broadcast on the flagship Channel One with a placard that read "Stop the war" and "They're lying to you".
Reuters
Wed Oct 05 2022
Marina Ovsyannikova, who staged an anti-war protest on live state television and was later charged with public activity aimed at discrediting the Russian army amid Ukraine-Russia conflict, attends a court hearing in Moscow, Russia. - REUTERS/Filepic
Kelantan: 70 peratus kemalangan maut babit penunggang, pembonceng motosikal
70 peratus kes kemalangan maut yang dicatat berlaku dari 1 hingga 26 April di Kelantan, membabitkan penunggang dan pembonceng motosikal.
[TERKINI] WEF | Pembangunan dunia yang tidak seimbang, Apa Solusi?
Mesyuarat Khas Forum Ekonomi Dunia (WEF) di Arab Saudi merungkai masalah ekonomi dan ketidakseimbangan pembangunan yang sedang melanda dunia. Menteri MITI, Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz dan Menteri Kewangan Arab Saudi, Mohammed Al-Jadaan berada sepentas merungkai masalah dunia yang memberi impak kepada semua negara.
PRK Kuala Kubu Baharu: Calon PH, PN bertembung ketika kempen
Dua calon yang bersaing bagi PRK Kuala Kubu Baharu hari ini bertembung buat kali pertama sejak hari penamaan calon semalam.
AWANI Ringkas: 1MDB - Polis Jerman rampas 4 kereta Bugatti Veyron edisi terhad
Ikuti rangkuman berita utama yang menjadi tumpuan sepanjang hari di Astro AWANI menerusi AWANI Ringkas.
Gempa bumi Indonesia, Tasikmalaya paling terjejas
Sekurang-kurangnya empat orang cedera dan 27 keluarga lagi terkesan selepas satu gempa bumi dengan magnitud 6.2 melanda Daerah Garut di Jawa Barat pada pukul 11.29 pagi waktu tempatan, Ahad.
Air penstabil dan pemangkin pembangunan negara - Fadillah Yusof
Air merupakan komponen penting yang bertindak sebagai penstabil dan pemangkin untuk pembangunan negara yang mampan.
Pelaburan RM2.4 bilion dibawa masuk ke Terengganu - MB
Sebanyak RM2.4 bilion nilai pelaburan yang berpotensi sedang dibawa masuk ke Terengganu setakat bulan April ini.
PRK Kuala Kubu Baharu: Kelayakan akademik bukan isu calon PN - Pas
Kempen PN sempena PRK Kuala Kubu Baharu tidak akan terjejas berikutan isu yang mengaitkan kelayakan akademik calonnya, Khairul Azhari Saut.
Peniaga nasi kukus raih jualan RM14,000 sebulan
Inisiatif Pendapatan Rakyat (IPR) mampu merubah graf pendapatan bulanan peserta apabila meningkatkan hasil jualan.
Piala Uber: Malaysia tewas kepada Taiwan
Malaysia memulakan kempen Kumpulan B Piala Uber 2024 mereka dengan langkah kiri apabila tewas 1-4 kepada Taiwan, di sini hari ini.