Journalist Nika Novak, who was convicted under the article on “confidential cooperation with a foreign organisation” and whose contact with her disappeared about a week ago, has been re-established through her lawyer. This became known from Novak’s acquaintances, reports the Russian service of Radio Liberty.
Since the moment when her relatives reported the loss of contact with her, the journalist has remained in colony number 11 in the village of Borzoi, Irkutsk region. The administration of the facility placed Nika Novak in solitary confinement because she went on hunger strike to protest against the conditions of detention in the colony.
After the loss of contact with the journalist, there were speculations that she was transferred, but they were not confirmed.
Earlier, Novak’s mother reported that, judging by the letter received from her, the journalist had stopped her hunger strike.
Novak said that she was regularly pressurised by the colony administration.
Nika Novak, who worked with Radio Liberty as a freelance correspondent, was sentenced to four years in prison in November 2024 in a case of “cooperation with a foreign organisation on a confidential basis”. This is the first time a journalist has been sentenced under this article.