Russian Production Designer Alexander Kondratov Arrested and Charged with Treason
Alexander Kondratov, a production designer who worked on the award-winning 2007 series "Likvidatsiya," was detained in Moscow and is now formally accused of treason. Rights groups report he lived in Kyiv since 2012, was arrested upon returning to Russia to renew his passport, and spent months under a series of administrative arrests before a criminal case was opened.
By Alexander Walter
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Russian authorities have arrested and formally charged production designer Alexander Kondratov with treason, according to media and rights group reports. Kondratov, who worked on the 2007 television series "Ликвидация" ("Likvidatsiya"), was detained in Moscow and remains in pretrial detention after a court appeal to lift his arrest was rejected.
A correspondent for Meduza's Russian-language partner Meduza — actually the report cited is by "Медиазона" — attended the hearing at the Moscow City Court (Мосгорсуд), which considered an appeal against Kondratov's detention and left the measure in place. The initial information about Kondratov's residential history and circumstances of detention was provided by the human rights group Memorial ("Мемориал").
Memorial reports that Kondratov, 52, had lived in Kyiv with his family since 2012 and had maintained professional ties to both the Russian and Ukrainian film industries. He served as production designer on "Ликвидация," a drama filmed in Odesa that portrays the city's postwar life and that earned Kondratov industry recognition, including the Golden Eagle and TEFI awards.
According to Memorial and reporting by Meduza and Meduza's Russian-language partners, Kondratov was detained on May 5 at Moscow's Vnukovo airport after flying to Russia to renew his international passport — an action taken "несмотря на все отговоры" (despite all warnings), the human rights group noted. After his arrival he spent roughly three months subjected to so-called "carousel" administrative arrests on petty hooliganism charges — a practice rights groups say is commonly used by authorities when criminal charges are being prepared but not yet formally initiated.
On August 5, investigators formally opened a criminal case against Kondratov on charges of treason. The decision document reportedly states that the alleged offense consisted of treason "путем не менее шести публикаций" in the internet. Kondratov's lawyer, Natalia Tikhonova, has confirmed the wording of the indictment but has not specified the content or subject matter of those online publications.
Following the initiation of the criminal case, the Meshchansky District Court of Moscow ordered Kondratov held in a pretrial detention center (СИЗО). His appeal against that detention was considered by the Moscow City Court, which left the remand order unchanged.
Rights groups and lawyers have frequently criticized the use of administrative arrests and other short-term detention measures in Russia as a way of putting pressure on individuals prior to the launch of criminal prosecutions. In Kondratov's case, Memorial's account emphasized the sequence of administrative procedures that preceded the treason indictment, portraying it as consistent with that broader pattern.
Kondratov has worked in both Russian and Ukrainian cinema and television for many years. "Ликвидация," released in 2007 and filmed in Odesa, brought him significant recognition within the industry. Beyond those career details, public reporting has not published further specifics about the content of the internet publications cited in the treason charge.
At the time of the appeal hearing, court records and public reporting have not disclosed additional evidence presented by prosecutors beyond the summary phrasing in the indictment. Kondratov's lawyer, Natalia Tikhonova, has provided limited comment to media, noting only the formal description of the charge. Observers tracking cases of alleged treason and other state security prosecutions in Russia say such cases often draw scrutiny from rights groups and international observers because of their potential implications for freedom of expression, movement, and due process.
The case remains under investigation, and Kondratov remains in pretrial detention awaiting further court proceedings. Human rights organizations and legal representatives monitoring the situation have underscored the lack of publicly available information about the specific allegations and the importance of transparency and access to legal defense in politically sensitive prosecutions.
