On 29 September 2025, Russian independent media reported that Russian authorities had charged exiled journalist and author Kseniya Luchenko, the creator of the Telegram channel “Pravoslavie i zombi” (“Orthodoxy and Zombies”), under the article of the Russian Criminal Code on spreading “false information” about the Russian army.
According to investigators, Luchenko allegedly published materials on the website of an “undesirable organisation” and on social media which, “based on expert analysis, contained knowingly false information about the actions of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.”
It was not clear what exactly the journalist was accused of, however, according to Russian legislation, any information on the full-scale invasion of Ukraine not confirmed by Russian authorities is automatically considered to be “false information”.
Luchenko was declared a “foreign agent” in May 2025. The new charges against her carry a potential prison sentence of up to five years and continue a broader trend of criminal prosecutions against journalists and bloggers under Russia’s “fake news” and “foreign agent” legislation.
UPDATE: On 17 October 2025, Russian independent media reported that Luchenko had also been included on Russia’s list of ‘terrorists and extremists’, and that the journalist’s bank accounts in Russia had been blocked.
UPDATE: On 24 October 2025, Russian authorities placed Luchenko on Russia’s ‘wanted’ list.
UPDATE: On 24 November 2025, the Cheremushkinsky district court of Moscow arrested Luchenko in absentia.