Moscow’s Basmanny Court convicted Ukrainian TV host Maria Efrosinina in absentia, ruling that she knowingly disseminated false information based on political hatred about the use of the Russian Armed Forces. The court sentenced her to seven years in a general regime penal colony, according to the court’s press service as reported by TASS.
A criminal case had been opened against Efrosinina on April 7, 2022, with investigators citing her Instagram posts as the basis for the proceedings. In Russia, Meta is often treated as extremist material, leading to restrictions on its platforms. Efrosinina was placed on Russia’s federal wanted list in July 2022 and added to the international wanted list in March 2023. In January 2023, she was also entered on Rosfin’s terrorist and extremist watch list.
On May 17, 2023, the Moscow court ordered her arrest in absentia and requested extradition or detention for two months, aligning with the investigation’s request. Efrosinina responded to the arrest in absentia by saying she could not do anything but rejoice and that she would continue to operate in the same spirit, according to the court’s reporting and subsequent social media posts.
After the court’s decision, Efrosinina wrote on social media that she did not fear the sentences being handed down.
What is Efrosinina known for?
Maria Efrosinina hails from Kerch, Crimea, and she notes that she has not visited the region since its annexation to Russia following the 2014 referendum. Her career began at the age of 19 with the First National TV Channel of Ukraine. She later worked with channels including Yeni Kanal, ICTV, Inter and STB, and she also engaged with Russian networks Muz-TV, NTV, and DTV.
In 2005, Efrosinina co-hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in Kiev with Pavlo Shilko. By 2006 she appeared among Focus magazine’s 100 most influential women in Ukraine, and in 2009 she was named TV Presenter of the Year by EGO magazine. The UN Population Fund named her its first honorary ambassador in Ukraine in 2018, and in 2020 President Volodymyr Zelensky awarded her the Order of Merit, 3rd class.
Efrosinina has a substantial following online, with millions of followers on social platforms. She is the founder of the Masha Foundation, a charity dedicated to helping women and children affected by violence.
False cases against Ukrainians
In July 2023 the Investigative Committee of Russia opened a criminal case against Ukrainian journalist Yanina Sokolovskaya, accusing her of spreading deliberately false information about the Russian Armed Forces’ actions against civilians in Ukraine. Searches were conducted at Sokolovskaya’s Moscow apartment as part of the investigation.
Also in July, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs added Ukrainian journalist Natalya Moseychuk to its wanted list. She faced a criminal case opened in March 2022 for alleged incitement to hatred or hostility.
Meanwhile, the Moscow Basmanny Court issued an in absentia arrest in July 2022 for Ukrainian journalist Dmitry Gordon, who is known in Russia as a foreign agent. He was accused of disseminating false information about the Russian army and of creating an extremist organization. The Russian authorities placed him on the wanted list. The Investigative Committee alleged that after Russia began its military operation in Ukraine, Gordon called for an armed attack on Russia and for launching an aggressive war, including the use of nuclear weapons, according to state reporting.