A Russian court has sentenced Marat Nikandrov, a Moscow Region resident who in 2023 was designated as a foreign agent by Russian authorities on the basis of his own application, to eight months on a suspended sentence, the Russian business news outlet RBC reported, citing the court ruling. He was also given a one-year probationary period.
Nikandrov was found guilty of violating the rules governing the activities of a “foreign agent.”
A travel ban imposed on him will be lifted once the verdict takes effect. He has 15 days to appeal.
Russia’s Investigative Committee opened a criminal case against him in February. Nikandrov said the case was brought because he had repeatedly faced administrative penalties and had failed to submit required reports to the Justice Ministry. He pleaded fully guilty.
In November 2023, Marat Nikandrov submitted an application to Russia’s Justice Ministry asking to be designated as a foreign agent by Russian authorities. He was 19 at the time and said he did it as a joke. The ministry approved the request and added him to the foreign agent registry. After criminal proceedings were opened against him, Nikandrov told journalists: “I didn’t expect it to be this serious. And I’m scared. Very.”
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