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The court has sentenced journalist and television producer Kapitolina Averina to six and a half years in a penal colony under the article on public calls for terrorism online (part 2 of article 205.2 of the Criminal Code). Sources familiar with the case told Sever.Realii.
As reported by Memorial, the reason for the criminal case was Averina’s comment in the Telegram chat Premium Nevzorov Chat. According to the project, in August 2025, during a discussion about a meeting between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, she wrote: “So what? A red carpet with applause? Trump is America’s disgrace. We have to destroy the russnya… we have to bomb Moscow.” This comment can no longer be found in the chat.
Averina’s acquaintances told Sever.Realii that she wrote harsh statements after the death of her civil partner, Yuriy Stratiy. He served in the Ukrainian Armed Forces and died in May 2023 in Zaporizhzhia region.
Averina was detained on 5 February 2026 in Ivangorod, Leningrad region, a town on the border with Estonia. She had come from Estonia to visit her ill mother. A few days later, Averina was added to Rosfinmonitoring’s list of “terrorists and extremists.”
Before the criminal case, Averina worked as a TV producer and made entertainment shows for Channel One, Yu, REN TV, and Zvezda. After the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, she closed her public Facebook profile, but according to acquaintances, she reposted anti-war content and wrote comments on forums.
Memorial considers Averina a political prisoner. Human rights defenders note that her comment was an emotional reaction to the war and did not pose a real threat.