Two suspects in Ilya Ponomarev case flee Russia after police raids
Viktor Zyryanov, a Telegram administrator for the news site Orlets, and Sergey Nosov, an activist from Russia’s Oryol region, have fled Russia, according to the news outlet Sever Realii. The men’s homes, along with the homes of a number of other journalists in various regions of the country, were raided last week in connection with the Russian authorities’ case against former State Duma deputy and Putin critic Ilya Ponomareva.
Zyryanov told journalists that he decided to leave Russia because of the “high risk of being sent to prison.” He believes Russian law enforcement is targeting him for his anti-war views.
“We probably ended up in the Ponomarev case because we have negative attitudes towards the war and always write and say what we believe is necessary. The future is uncertain. We’re planning to return after the fascist regime in Russia collapses. We’ll work to bring that moment closer,” Zyryanov said.
Zyryanov noted that he doesn’t know what his status in the Ponomarev case is. He wasn’t home when the authorities searched his home. He also said his bank accounts have been blocked. Both Zyryanov and Nosov are currently in Georgia.
On September 8, in multiple regions of Russia, law enforcement officials raided the homes of various journalists and activists who the authorities reportedly believe have ties to Ilya Ponomarev, a former deputy in Russia's State Duma. Ponomarev himself, who has lived in Ukraine for several years, was arrested in absentia by the Russian authorities in August for allegedly spreading “disinformation” about the Russian army.
On August 21, Ponomarev claimed that the murder of Daria Dugina, the daughter of Eurasianist philosopher Alexander Dugin, had been committed by an organization called the National Republican Army, despite there being no previous mentions of that group on the Internet.
On August 31, Ponomarev announced that the National Republican Army and two other organizations had signed a declaration of cooperation. The three groups, he said, were creating a center for a “Russian armed opposition,” with Ponomarev at the helm.
