Moscow Court Jails Journalist Daria Shipacheva 12 Years for Treason

July 29, 2026 Daria Shipacheva in court. Dmitry Belitsky / Moskva News Agency A Moscow judge has sentenced journalist Daria Shipacheva to 12 years in prison after finding her guilty of treason, the exiled outlet Mediazona reported Wednesday. The science outlet T-Invariant, citing five sources close to Shipacheva, who was born in Ukraine, reported that the Moscow City Court’s guilty verdict stems from a wire transfer she made to a Ukrainian family member. “As far as we know, investigators took a transfer she made to a civilian family member, reinterpreted its purpose and built the entire treason charge around it,” an unidentified acquaintance of the journalist told T-Invariant. Shipacheva was arrested in April 2025 and transferred to a detention facility in the southern city of Rostov-on-Don. According to T-Invariant, she was recently transferred to Moscow’s infamous Lefortovo prison. Her trial, which Mediazona said lasted just 90 minutes, took place behind closed doors. Shipacheva’s family and a court-appointed attorney decided against releasing any details about her arrest or trial. A friend of the journalist told T-Invariant that she opposed drawing public attention to her case out of fear it would lead to a harsher prison sentence. “But recently, she asked us to invite reporters to the sentencing hearing,” the friend was quoted as saying. The independent news outlet Sotavision published a video showing Shipacheva’s shocked reaction to the judge’s verdict on Wednesday. Shipacheva’s defense team had asked the judge to give her a lighter sentence since she had cooperated with law enforcement officials and pleaded guilty. Between 2019 and 2025, Shipacheva worked as a freelance medical journalist for Forbes Russia, in addition to outlets like RBC, Takie Dela and others. Before her arrest, T-Invariant reported that Shipacheva was subjected to online harassment by members of the banned ultra-nationalist group “Male State” over her feminist views. Russian courts convicted a record 312 people on charges of treason, espionage and illegal cooperation with a foreign state in the first half of 2026, according to the exiled news outlet Vyorstka. Read more about: Court cases , Journalists , Treason Sign up for our free weekly newsletter Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysis and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy We sent a confirmation to your email. Please confirm your subscription. A Message from The Moscow Times: Dear readers, We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent." These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia. We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help. Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact. By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us. Once Monthly Annual Continue Not ready to support today? Remind me later. × Remind me next month Remind me Thank you! Your reminder is set. We will send you one reminder email a month from now. For details on the personal data we collect and how it is used, please see our Privacy Policy. Read more TV Rain Editor-in-Chief Jailed 8 Years in Absentia Over War ‘Fakes’ Tikhon Dzyadko, who serves as editor-in-chief at TV Rain, was accused of spreading false information about the Russian armed forces. 1 Min read Moscow Graduate Arrested on Treason Charges After ‘Carousel Arrests’ Leonid Katz, a 22-year-old graduate of the Higher School of Economics, had been subjected to four consecutive administrative arrests since early October... 2 Min read Yekaterinburg Editor Accused of Bribing Former Police Officer Denis Allayarov, an editor at the pro-Kremlin news agency Ura.ru, was accused of bribing his uncle, a former senior police officer allegedly dismissed... 1 Min read Ryazan News Editor Accused of Extortion Released on House Arrest Alexei Frolov, who headed the Ryazan bureau of Novaya Gazeta until his arrest in January, was detained alongside two other local journalists. 1 Min read