July 21 (UPI) -- Igor "Strelkov" Girkin, former commander of the Russian forces in occupied Ukraine's Donetsk Oblast, was arrested Friday on extremism charges according to his wife and Russian media.
"Today, at about 11:30 a.m., representatives of the investigative committee came to us. I managed to learn from friends that my husband was charged under article 282 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (extremism)," a post on Girkin's Telegram channel signed "Miroslava Reginskaya, the wife of Igor Strelkov," said.
Girkin's lawyer Alexander Molokhov said on the RTVI Telegram channel that his actions have recently attracted the attention of the authorities and Girkin's whereabouts are unknown.
His arrest comes three days after calling on Telegram for Vladimir Putin to step down.
"For 23 years, a nonentity was at the head of the country, who managed to "throw dust in the eyes" of a significant part of the population," Girkin wrote. "The country will not survive another six years of this cowardly mediocrity in power."
Girkin, is a former Russian Federal Security Service agent who was a pivotal figure in the effort seize Russian-occupied Crimea in 2014 and organized pro-Russian militias in occupied eastern Ukraine
He was also found guilty in 2022 at the Hague District Court of participation in the shooting down of a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 in 2014 that killed all 298 people on board.
Amid the recent invasion of Ukraine, Girkin had become increasingly critical of Putin, leading a movement calling for more extreme measures in the war.
