Two Russian Newspapers Say Several Reporters Detained At Unsanctioned Rally In Moscow

At least two Russian newspapers have said that their correspondents as well as reporters from other media outlets were detained at an unauthorized rally in support of journalist Ivan Golunov in Moscow on Wednesday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th June, 2019) At least two Russian newspapers have said that their correspondents as well as reporters from other media outlets were detained at an unauthorized rally in support of journalist Ivan Golunov in Moscow on Wednesday.

The unsanctioned rally is underway in central Moscow. Earlier, the Moscow authorities authorized a similar rally slated for June 16. Investigative journalist Golunov, meanwhile, was released from house arrest on Tuesday after Russian Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev announced that the case against Golunov had been dropped due to the lack of evidence of his participation in the crime.

The Vedomosti newspaper reported that the police had detained its correspondent Vitaly Petlevoy at the unsanctioned rally, while the Kommersant newspaper said about detention of its reporter Roman Dorofeev.

Dorofeev later confirmed to Sputnik that he had been taken to a police department. According to the correspondent, he was covering the unauthorized rally live when police officers asked him to get in a police van, even though Dorofeev said he had had a press card and the editorial task in a digital form.

In addition, the Kommersant newspaper reported about detention of journalists from the Meduza news portal, Novaya gazeta, the Dozhd tv channel, Kommersant FM, the Takie Dela web portal, Lenta.ru, Reuters and Ekho Moskvy.

Police detained Golunov on June 6 after finding in his possession five packages of a powdery substance, which then turned out to be mephedrone, a synthetic stimulant. Later, cocaine was found in Golunov's apartment in Moscow. The reporter was put under house arrest by a court on Saturday, despite him maintaining that the drugs were planted.

The story has drawn massive attention both from the authorities and journalistic community. Three leading Russian newspapers even issued a joint statement voicing their concern that Golunov's case might be linked to his investigative journalistic work, which is famous for its focus on corruption in the country.

Following the situation around Golunov's arrest, Kolokoltsev said that he would ask President Vladimir Putin to authorize the dismissal of two police generals in connection with this widely-publicized detention.