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The Khoroshyovsky District Court of Moscow has sentenced economic columnist Boris Grozovsky in absentia to two years in a general-regime penal colony for involvement in the activities of an “undesirable organisation” (part 1, article 284.1 of the Criminal Code). Additionally, Grozovsky has been banned from administering websites for five years. This was reported by Mediazona, citing their correspondent in the courtroom.

The prosecutor had requested a sentence of three years and eleven months in the penal colony for the columnist. Grozovsky’s lawyer argued for acquittal, saying that, in her opinion, investigators had failed to prove her client’s intent. The defence also questioned whether the expert’s statements about the Russian economy could truly threaten national security.

The criminal case is connected to the interview “Hooray! I’m Bankrupt!,” which aired in November 2025 on Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. In the programme, Grozovsky discussed the indebtedness of Russians and businesses, the rise in bad loans, and Central Bank measures to limit lending.

At one of the hearings, witness Andrey Kupchenkov testified. He said that he regularly listens to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and had seen Grozovsky on one of the programmes, though he could not recall its name. According to him, the columnist gave a “negative assessment of what’s happening in Russia” and spoke about an “economic collapse” and a “failing monetary policy.”

  • Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty was declared an “undesirable organisation” in Russia in February 2024.
  • In December that same year, the Khoroshyovsky court fined Grozovsky 10,000 rubles (approx. US$110) for links to an “undesirable organisation” (article 20.33 of the Administrative Code). The grounds for this were his participation in journalist Sergey Medvedev’s programme “Archaeology” on Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, where they discussed Russia’s possible future and a change of leadership.
  • On 6 November 2026, the Ministry of Justice added Grozovsky to the register of “foreign agents.” The agency claimed, among other things, that he spread “false information” about the Russian authorities and spoke out against the war in Ukraine.