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Dmitry Simbaev, a citizen of Russia and Ireland, was detained at Chelyabinsk airport in August 2025. This was reported by the Irish Times, quoting his wife, Darya Petrenko.
According to her, law enforcement officers searched his luggage and seized his phone, then told him he was being detained because of “anti-Russian” content on his phone. Petrenko suggests the reason for his detention was messages she sent in 2024, in which she criticised the Russian authorities over the invasion of Ukraine.
“They started shelling my city, Kharkiv… I lost my mother, my mother died. I wrote my opinion [in messages] because of the difficult situation in my life,” Petrenko said.
Her mother died of a heart attack, which her daughter believes was brought on by stress from the war.
Simbaev was charged under articles on justifying terrorism (Part 2, Article 205.2 of the Criminal Code), incitement to extremism (Part 2, Article 280 of the Criminal Code), and vigilantism involving violence (Part 2, Article 330 of the Criminal Code), according to his wife.
The Irish Times does not specify which preventive measure was chosen for Simbaev, but indirect details suggest he is in a pre-trial detention centre. His wife says he has not been allowed to phone her or his parents:
“He was not allowed to see his parents, not once in four months. Only his lawyer sees him, maybe once a week. I get very little information.”
Ireland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it is providing consular assistance to Simbaev. As the Irish Times notes, intervention by the Irish authorities is complicated by the fact that he holds Russian citizenship.
The 49-year-old Simbaev had lived and worked in Ireland for over 20 years. He visited Russia every year to see his parents. Petrenko moved to Ireland after the war in Ukraine began. The couple married in January 2023.