Favorskaya has been covering Navalny’s trials for several years, and the media freedom group Reporters Without Borders said Thursday that she is one of six journalists across the country detained this month.
Russian authorities arrested Favorskaya late Wednesday and accused her of joining an “extremist organization” with posts on the social media platforms of Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation, Russian human rights group OVD-Info reported, according to information from the Guardian.
Navalny’s spokeswoman, Kira Yarmysh, said Favorskaya did not post anything on the foundation’s platforms and hinted that Russian authorities targeted her for doing her job as a journalist.
OVD-Info reported that Favorskaya was initially arrested on March 17 following laying flowers at Navalny’s grave.
She spent 10 days in jail following being charged with disobeying police, but when that detention period ended, authorities re-charged her and ordered her to appear on Friday at Moscow’s Basmanny District Court.
She is one of several Russian journalists targeted by authorities as part of a sweeping crackdown on dissent in Russia.
Two other journalists, Alexandra Astakhova and Anastasia Musatova, were also taken into pretrial detention following coming to meet Favorskaya at the detention center where she is being held, Reporters Without Borders reported.
Ekaterina Anikievich of Russian news site SOTAvision and Konstantin Yarov of RusNews were also arrested by police while covering the investigation at Favorskaya’s home.
Yarov told RusNews that he was beaten during his detention: “They kicked me, put a foot on my head, twisted my fingers, mocked me when I tried to stand up, demanded to show my backpack as if it contained explosives.”
In Ufa, 1,300 kilometers (800 miles) east of Moscow, Russian authorities on Wednesday arrested Olga Komleva, a journalist for RusNews.
She was also accused of extremism and involvement with Navalny and his organization, according to Reporters Without Borders.
Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation has been designated an extremist organization by Russian authorities, meaning people associated with it might face prison terms.
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