In Russia, TV presenter Tatyana Lazareva has been arrested in absentia for the second time.

The Presnensky District Court in Moscow has arrested TV presenter Tatyana Lazareva in absentia over charges of evading the duties of a ‘foreign agent’ (Article 330.1, Part 2 of the Criminal Code). This was reported by the pro-Kremlin agency RIA Novosti, citing the case file on the court’s website.

This is the second time that Lazareva has been arrested in absentia over a criminal case. The first time, the pre-trial restriction was imposed over charges of justifying terrorism (Article 205.2, Part 2 of the Criminal Code).

The case was triggered by comments Lazareva made on air during the ‘And Then Came Graham’ show about drone attacks on Russian regions. The report was filed by State Duma deputy Andrey Alshevskikh.

“Literally every day now we come up against an attack by drones on Russian cities. And you know, it’s terrible, but I am glad,” Lazareva said.

In December 2024, Lazareva was sentenced in absentia to six and a half years in a penal colony over these comments.

Since June 2024, Tatyana Lazareva has been on the wanted list as she lives outside Russia.

• The presenter has also been added to the ‘foreign agent’ registry. This happened six months after the start of the war in Ukraine. Russia’s Ministry of Justice stated that Lazareva received foreign funding specifically from Ukraine.
• In addition, she has repeatedly been issued with reports for violating ‘foreign agent’ legislation.