Russia's trial against ‘Anonymous International’ hacktivist leader will be closed to the public

The criminal trial against Vladimir Anikeev, the leader of the “Anonymous International” hacktivist group, will be held in a special proceeding closed to the public, according to the news agency Rosbalt. Sources tell the news agency that Anikeev has reached a plea bargain with state prosecutors and agreed to a special proceeding.

Anonymous International, known in Russia as “Shaltai Boltai” (Humpty Dumpty), stole and leaked correspondence between multiple state officials over the past several years. The case materials in Anikeev’s trial reportedly include Russian state secrets, including details about how the government ultimately captured him.

According to a report in April by the news agency RIA Novosti, the victims in the case against Anikeev include Rossiya Segodnya general director Dmitry Kiselyov, whose critics often call him the Kremlin’s “chief propagandist,” presidential aide Andrey Belousov, presidential advisor Timur Prokopenko, and Dmitry Medvedev’s press secretary, Natalya Timakova.

Federal Security Service (FSB) agents reportedly captured Anikeev in October 2016 and later detained two high-ranking FSB officers, Dmitry Dokuchaev and Sergey Mikhailov, based on Anikeev’s testimony. The two FSB agents are suspected of taking control of the hacktivist group and using it to target state officials. They are being charged with state treason and cooperating with the CIA.