According to Seznam Zprávy, Czech police detained and questioned Russian nationals Vitaly Chashchukhin and Igor Dolmatov, whom the outlet’s journalists identified as working for Rybar, a Telegram channel with ties to the Russian Defense Ministry. The two were ordered to leave the country within three days.

During questioning, Chashchukhin and Dolmatov said they worked for the Russian newspaper Izvestia, which is under EU sanctions. Chashchukhin was questioned for about nine hours, then left the country but remained in Europe. He has long lived in Germany, where he works for sanctioned Russian media outlets. He told Seznam Zprávy that he has had permanent residency there for about 10 years.

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Czech police shared information about Chashchukhin with their German counterparts, and Seznam Zprávy asked the German authorities whether they planned to take up the case.

A spokesperson for Germany’s General Customs Directorate, the agency responsible for enforcing sanctions, did not answer directly but said that the circumstances of any possible sanctions violation are examined carefully on a “case-by-case basis.”

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A day earlier, Seznam Zprávy reported that Rybar representatives work in Europe and regularly seek comments from politicians and experts. Seznam Zprávy journalists arranged the Prague meeting by pretending to be media literacy expert Bohumil Kartous, whom Rybar had invited for an interview. Chashchukhin and camera operator Igor Dolmatov traveled from Germany for the shoot.

Seznam Zprávy identified Moscow-based documentary filmmaker Boris Dvorkin as the shoot’s producer. Dvorkin had not previously been publicly linked to Rybar. The team reportedly planned interviews not only in Czechia but also in Slovakia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Austria, Hungary, Belgium, and France.

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