A Moscow court has sentenced rapper Alisher Morgenshtern in absentia to a seven-million-ruble fine on criminal charges of failing to comply with his obligations as a designated foreign agent, the independent Russian news outlet Mediazona reported.
The charges stemmed from posts Morgenshtern published on Telegram, Instagram, and YouTube between March and June 2024 without the required foreign agent disclaimer. Prosecutors had sought a fine of 8,206,000 rubles.
Defense attorney Ildar Islamov argued in closing statements that the evidence was insufficient to establish Morgenshtern’s guilt and that the criminal case had been opened over posts that had already been deleted.
Before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Morgenshtern repeatedly expressed support for Vladimir Putin’s policies, but changed his position after the invasion began and left Russia. In May 2022, Russian authorities designated him a foreign agent. In 2024, criminal proceedings were opened against him for failing to fulfill his foreign agent obligations, and he was placed on a wanted list in Russia. His Moscow property has been seized.
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