MOSCOW, June 28 Moscow's Tverskoy Court has fined blogger Ilya Varlamov* 50,000 rubles for discrediting the use of the Russian Armed Forces, a correspondent from the courtroom reports.
«To find Ilya Aleksandrovich Varlamov guilty… To impose a punishment in the form of an administrative fine in the amount of 50 thousand rubles,» the judge announced the decision.
According to the case materials, a report was drawn up against the blogger based on the posting on his YouTube channel “Varlamov” of a video dated March 24, 2023, which “contains public statements aimed at discrediting the army.”
The blogger’s representative did not answer the judge’s question whether Varlamov admits guilt, but said that the period for bringing him to administrative responsibility had expired and therefore the administrative proceedings should be terminated.
According to him, the video is currently blocked and users cannot view it. The lawyer refused to comment to the correspondent.
Before this, the courts had already fined Varlamov* for violating the law on foreign agents.
The Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation recognized Varlamov* as a foreign agent on March 23, 2023. According to the ministry, the blogger disseminated “inaccurate information about the decisions made by public authorities and the policies they pursue,” and also received support from foreign sources. He tried to get the court to declare this decision illegal, but was refused. Later, the appeal confirmed the decision of the court of first instance.
* A person recognized as a foreign agent in Russia