The Moscow Basmanny Court issued in absentia warrants for filmmaker Alexander Rodnyansky and director Ivan Vyrypaev on charges of disseminating information considered false about the actions of the Russian Armed Forces during the special military operation in Ukraine. This information was reported by TASS. The court reportedly accepted the prosecutor’s request, and Rodnyansky and Vyrypaev have been placed on an international wanted list.
The defense for Rodnyansky challenged the court decision, though the timetable for the objection has not been set. For Vyrypaev, no appeal was filed and the decision has entered into force. The two individuals are accused of deliberately spreading misinformation for political purposes, with a potential maximum penalty of ten years in a penal colony.
Earlier, the Moscow Golovinsky Court sentenced Colombian citizen Saray Giraldo to five years and two months imprisonment for disseminating false information about the Russian Armed Forces, allegedly at the direction of a United States company.
News outlets reported that a Saratov deputy from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation flagged a case involving forgery against the Russian Armed Forces.
On February 24, 2022, the Russian president announced that a special military operation would be conducted in Ukraine in response to requests for assistance from the leaders of the LPR and DPR.