Russian psychiatric evaluation finds pro-Kremlin blogger Ilya Remeslo sane after anti-Putin posts

A psychiatric assessment at the Serbsky Institute of Psychiatry concluded that blogger Ilya Remeslo is sane, according to his defense lawyer, Sergei Badamshin. The evaluation also stated that Remeslo "did not suffer, and does not suffer, from any illness," as per Badamshin. On July 26, Remeslo was transferred from a pretrial detention center to the Serbsky Institute following his charges of spreading false information.

The pretrial investigation concluded, and the Russian state news agency TASS announced the final charges against him. The Moscow City Court heard an appeal of Remeslo's detention order on August 26 and maintained his pretrial detention. Remeslo expressed his gratitude, stating, "Thank you for your attention to my case. Everything will be fine.

Russia will be free." The blogger had gained notoriety through a long-standing dispute with Alexey Navalny. However, in March 2026, Remeslo posted a series of messages on his Telegram channel, harshly criticizing Russian President Vladimir Putin, demanding his resignation and conviction as a "war criminal and thief." As a result, Remeslo was sent to a psychiatric hospital for a brief period, only to be released after 30 days.

He was detained in mid-July on charges of disseminating false information about the military, stemming from his posts. His defense attorney alleged that the charges were related to a manifesto he published four months prior. On July 17, Moscow's Basmanny District Court ordered Remeslo to remain in pretrial detention. Meduza, the news outlet reporting on this story, emphasizes its commitment to transparency regarding the use of artificial intelligence in the newsroom.

This particular story was written by one of their human journalists and translated from Russian using an AI model, which follows their strict editorial standards. Every draft undergoes review by a Meduza editor before publication. Should any errors be detected in this translation, readers are encouraged to contact the outlet at reports@meduza.io.

For access to Meduza's exclusive English-language content, subscribers can subscribe to their newsletter.