Zhanna Nemtsova has been sentenced in absentia to four years in prison for her work at her father’s foundation.

The Zamoskvoretsky District Court of Moscow has sentenced journalist Zhanna Nemtsova in absentia to four years in a general-regime penal colony for allegedly running the activities of an “undesirable” organisation (Part 3, Article 284.1 of the Criminal Code). This was reported by Mediazona.

Nemtsova has also been banned from administering online resources for eight years. The prosecutor had requested a five-year term in a colony and a nine-year ban for her.

The case is linked to Nemtsova’s work at the Boris Nemtsov Foundation for Freedom, which she established after her father was killed. As evidence, prosecutors presented a recording of her speech in Budva, Montenegro, where she spoke about her work at the foundation, as well as a comment she made to journalists about the foundation being declared “undesirable.” According to her lawyer, Nemtsova does not admit guilt.

At the end of July, the Zamoskvoretsky Court ordered Nemtsova’s arrest in absentia, and in September it became known that she had been placed on an international wanted list.

The Boris Nemtsov Foundation for Freedom was founded in 2015. The organisation supports independent Russian-language media and provides scholarships for journalists, activists, researchers and human rights defenders. In 2024, the Russian authorities declared the foundation an “undesirable” organisation. Nemtsova left Russia in 2015 after receiving threats.