Nine sheep dressed in press jackets were sent to the offices of the investigative Novaya Gazeta newspaper on Monday, days after it published an explosive report about contract killings in Russia.
Novaya Gazeta has a reputation for hard-hitting investigations on topics including the 2014 downing of flight MH17 and the 2016 Panama Paper leaks, while a number of its journalists have been killed over the years, most notably Anna Politkovskaya in 2006.
Earlier this month, a funeral wreath and a severed goat’s head were sent to the outlet’s office, along with threats to one of the newspaper's reporters, Denis Korotkov. Korotkov authored a report last week that alleged links between Putin-friendly businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin and a number of contract killings.
“They brought cages with live sheep to the entrance of our building,” the Novaya Gazeta's press secretary Nadezhda Prusenkova told the Mediazona news outlet on Monday.
Prusenkova added that security guards had been called over the incidents.
In photographs posted on social media, the sheep are seen wearing vests that say “Novaya Gazeta," inside three cages that are linked with chains.
In September, Novaya Gazeta launched a crowdfunding campaign, asking readers to support its investigative work.
