DOXA: Daria Egereva and Natalia Leongardt to Spend Almost a Year in Pre-Trial Detention

On 10 September 2026, Moscow’s Basmanny District Court extended the pre-trial detention of Indigenous rights defenders Daria Egereva and Natalia Leongardt until 9 December 2026. By that date, the two women will have spent almost a year in detention without a verdict. Their case remains at the investigation stage.

DOXA reports that Egereva’s lawyer, Olga Podoplelova, said the defence would appeal the decision and continue seeking a change in the measure of restraint. She noted, however, that the current practice in this and other politically motivated cases gives little reason to expect their immediate release.

The publication also highlights the international attention surrounding Egereva’s case. In January 2026, former UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples S. James Anaya and Arctic University of Norway professor Øyvind Ravna nominated Egereva for the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize, citing the need to draw attention to the situation of Indigenous Peoples and repression in Russia.

DOXA recalls that Egereva and Leongardt face 10 to 20 years in prison under Article 205.5 of the Russian Criminal Code for alleged participation in the “Aborigen Forum”, an informal Indigenous rights network that Russian authorities have designated as a terrorist organization. Ten UN Special Procedures have called on Russia to end their prosecution.

The article also places the case in the broader context of growing pressure on Indigenous women and independent Indigenous rights defenders in Russia.

Source: DOXA