Yaroslav Shirshikov
A resident of Yekaterinburg, a PR-specialist. He was a participant in protests against the construction of a church in the Drama Theatre Square in 2019 and was sentenced to seven months in a settlement penal colony on charges of inciting mass riots and defamation. On 30 March 2023, he was the first to report the disappearance of The Wall Street Journal journalist Evan Hershkovich, who was accused of espionage: Shirshikov wrote that he had met with the journalist and had given him an interview. It later became known that a case had been opened against Shirshikov for justification of terrorism due to a publication about the death of Vladlen Tatarsky. He was taken into custody. On 20 June 2023, he was released on his recognisance. On 27 February 2024, Shirshikov was sentenced to two years in a general regime colony. On 17 October 2024, the appellate court increased his sentence to five years, considering the motive of political hostility as an aggravating factor. In April 2025, Shirshikov had his left eye removed at the Ekaterinburg City Hospital.