Russia orders in-absentia arrest of comedian Sasha Dolgopolov on Nazism-rehabilitation charges

Source: Mediazona

A Moscow court has ordered the arrest of comic Sasha Dolgopolov in absentia. The news outlet Mediazona had earlier reported that a request for his arrest had been submitted to the court. He faces a criminal case on charges of rehabilitating Nazism — a case prosecutors had earlier advocated.

The case stems from one of Dolgopolov’s stand-up performances. Prosecutors allege that during the show, he “made a statement” intended to insult the memory of the country’s defenders, demean World War II veterans, and “diminish the significance of the feat they accomplished.” They have not specified what that “statement” was.

The Telegram channel Baza, which has ties to Russia’s security services, reported that the “statement” was a joke Dolgopolov made about walking around Berlin: “Sometimes I walk around Berlin and think, ‘Wow, they killed my grandfather,’” Dolgopolov said, according to the channel. Mediazona suggested the remark came from a show posted to the comic’s channel in December 2024.

Dolgopolov now lives in Germany.

At Meduza, we are committed to transparency about our use of artificial intelligence in the newsroom. The story you’re reading was written by one of our living, breathing journalists and translated from Russian using an AI model configured to follow our strict editorial standards. This translation process is the result of extensive testing and refinements to ensure our English-language coverage is timely and accurate. A Meduza editor reviews every draft before publication.

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Russia orders in-absentia arrest of comedian Sasha Dolgopolov on Nazism-rehabilitation charges

Саша Долгополов

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Russia orders in-absentia arrest of comedian Sasha Dolgopolov on Nazism-rehabilitation charges

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