Russian hairdresser jailed 5 years, 2 months for spreading fake news about army
Anna Alexandrova, a 47-year-old mother of two, denied publishing eight anti-war messages on social media and argued that the charges stemmed from a personal dispute over land with a neighbor.
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A St Petersburg-based hairdresser has been sentenced to five years and two months in prison for allegedly disseminating false information about the Russian military.
Anna Alexandrova, a 47-year-old mother of two, denied publishing eight anti-war messages on social media and argued that the charges stemmed from a personal dispute over land with a neighbor. The neighbor admitted to reporting Alexandrova after she sent her daughter images related to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, laws criminalising the spread of so-called “fake news” about the military have led to sweeping arrests. Critics argue these laws have been weaponized to silence dissent.
In a separate ruling, four journalists—Antonina Favorskaya, Konstantin Gabov, Sergey Karelin, and Artyom Kriger—were sentenced in Moscow to five and a half years for allegedly supporting an "extremist organisation" linked to the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny. Despite their insistence that they were simply performing their journalistic duties, the court ruled otherwise.
Favorskaya, known for her coverage of Navalny’s legal proceedings, was arrested while filming at his burial site in March 2024. Her footage, captured a day before his disputed death in an Arctic penal colony, remains the final visual record of Navalny alive.
The growing repression has drawn comparisons to Soviet-era tactics, as even everyday citizens now face jail time following reports from neighbors or colleagues. Alexandrova’s case reportedly began as a joint effort with her accuser to resist deforestation in their village, but eventually spiraled into hostility.
While Alexandrova maintains her innocence, the court imposed a publication ban on her for three additional years. Meanwhile, legal challenges are mounting against the controversial legislation. Lawyers representing Moscow councillor Alexei Gorinov—who was imprisoned for denouncing the war during a council meeting—have filed a petition to the Constitutional Court. They argue the law is being misused to stifle legitimate criticism and anti-war sentiment under the guise of maintaining public order.
