On Russia's Wanted List: Pussy Riot Member

Nadya Tolokonnikova faces unspecified criminal charges
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Mar 29, 2023 5:01 PM CDT
On Russia's Wanted List: Pussy Riot Member
Honoree Nadya Tolokonnikova from Pussy Riot attends the WSJ Magazine 2022 Innovator Awards at the Museum of Modern Art on Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2022, in New York.   (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)

Russian authorities have put a member of the Pussy Riot punk group on a wanted list for criminal suspects as the Kremlin works to stifle political dissent. Russian news outlet Mediazona discovered an entry for Nadya Tolokonnikova in the Russian Interior Ministry's database of wanted individuals on Wednesday. The entry, also reviewed by the AP, said Tolokonnikova faces criminal charges, but it didn't specify what the charges are. Tolokonnikova became widely known for taking part in a 2012 Pussy Riot protest inside Moscow’s Christ the Savior Cathedral. She spent nearly two years in prison.

Earlier this month Russia's top human rights lawyer, Pavel Chikov, said a criminal case had been launched against Tolokonnikova on the charge of offending religious believers' feelings, which became a criminal offense in Russia after the 2012 Pussy Riot protest. Tolokonnikova left Russia and reportedly lives in the US. In 2021, the Russian government designated her as a "foreign agent," a label that brings additional government scrutiny and carries pejorative connotations that can discredit the recipients. Russian authorities have applied the designation to independent media outlets and opposition activists.

(More Pussy Riot stories.)

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