Masked police raid Novaya Gazeta, criminal case opened against journalists
Security service officials wearing balaclavas entered the central Moscow offices of the newspaper on April 9.
“We do not know the reason,” the newspaper reported on its Telegram channel shortly after noon on April 9.
Five hours later, police officials were still at the premises.
“As of 17:00, investigative activities at the Novaya Gazeta editorial office are ongoing. Lawyers have still not been granted access. There remains no contact with colleagues.”
According to the newspaper, the search of the office may be linked to a case against columnist Oleg Roldugin. Reportedly, police also raided Roldugin’s apartment the same day, and the journalist has been taken to the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Moscow for questioning.
According to Kaloy Akhilgov, the newspaper’s lawyer, the search was conducted by the Investigative Committee in Moscow.
Akhilgov himself was not allowed into the offices.
“I went to the office. People in masks would not let me in — they said I was too controversial to be allowed inside. Not a joke,” Akhilgov reported on Telegram.
According to Russian state-controlled media, the search is related to the alleged “unlawful use and disclosure of citizens’ personal data”.
Police say they have “identified a group of individuals who had obtained personal data from illegal online sources” and that a criminal case has been opened.
Following the start of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, Novaya Gazeta suspended its operations. In September 2022, its licence was revoked following a complaint from Roskomnadzor. Nevertheless, Novaya Gazeta has continued to operate its news website.
A large number of the newspaper’s journalists left Russia after the start of the full-scale invasion and the introduction of wartime censorship. Many of them joined Novaya Gazeta Europe, an independent outlet in exile established in Riga in April 2022.
Novaya Gazeta was established in 1993 and was, for three decades, considered one of Russia’s leading independent media outlets. For much of that time, its editor was Dmitry Muratov, who in 2021 was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his “efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition for democracy and lasting peace.”
