Law enforcement authorities have charged Gleb Trifonov, editor-in-chief of the Telegram news channel Baza, with bribery, the state-run TASS news agency reported Wednesday, citing his lawyer and sources familiar with the case.
Trifonov, who has led Baza since 2022, was taken into custody Tuesday following police searches of his home and the outlet’s office in Moscow.
A TASS source said Trifonov and Baza producer Tatyana Lukyanova were both charged with bribery, allegations they deny.
“After my client was held for about 20 hours, first outside, then inside the Central Administrative District Investigative Committee building, he was officially charged with bribery,” Trifonov’s lawyer, Alexei Mikhalchik, confirmed with TASS.
Law enforcement authorities plan to petition a court to keep Trifonov and Lukyanova in custody during the investigation, according to TASS. Mikhalchik said he believed the detention was being used to exert pressure on the journalist.
Investigators allege Trifonov was involved in paying bribes to police officers in the Krasnodar, Krasnoyarsk and Belgorod regions in exchange for confidential information.
“They received information from law enforcement officers via online messengers about emergency situations and their aftermath, and then transferred money,” a law enforcement source told TASS.
Baza, which has more than 1.6 million subscribers on Telegram, is known for its close ties to law enforcement and frequently cites anonymous police sources in its reporting. The channel also has pro-government leanings.
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