Marina Chaika’s lawyer confirms attack on her client outside of Moscow

Marina Chaika, the ex-wife of Russian businessman Artyom Chaika (who is the son of Russia’s former attorney general), was attacked outside of Moscow on the evening of January 12, her lawyer Ekaterina Gordon told Meduza. 

According to Gordon, Chaika filed a complaint with the Russian Investigative Committee following the incident.

The attack took place near a dispensary on the Mozhaisky highway in Odintsovo, a satellite city outside of Moscow, where Chaika went for a psychological examination at the request of one of her other lawyers. 

According to the Telegram-based news outlet Baza, Chaika was approached by “masked men, who introduced themselves as FSB or FSO [Secret Service] officers.” She was then taken to a basement, where they questioned her about her ex-husband’s family and his business dealings. Reportedly, she was also forced to drink an unknown liquid and told “not to get tested for three days.” Chaika was released a few hours later.

Marina Chaika contacted her lawyer Ekaterina Gordon and told her about what happened that same night.

Update. A Meduza correspondent spoke with Marina Chaika, who confirmed that she was abducted on the evening of January 12, near a dispensary in Odintsovo. She declined to give further details.

Artyom and Marina Chaika were divorced in July 2020. In September, Marina released a video revealing that her husband was trying to intimidate her and threatening to take away her children. In particular, Marina asked that Artyom return her identity documents (including her passport, which he had allegedly confiscated to prevent her from fleeing the country) and stop challenging the dissolution of their marriage.

In addition to appealing to an appellate court over the divorce, Artyom Chaika also requested that their youngest daughter live with him.