Russian journalist Nika Novak missing from prison

Berlin, December 2, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists is calling on Russian authorities to immediately disclose the whereabouts of journalist Nika Novak, who has gone missing from a prison in Bozoy, in the Siberian region of Irkutsk.

Novak is serving a four-year prison sentence after being convicted in November 2024 on charges of “confidential cooperation with a foreign organization,” stemming from her work for U.S. Congress-funded broadcaster Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL). 

On November 29, the journalist’s lawyer, Yulia Kuznetsova, said that prison authorities had not allowed anyone to meet with Novak that week. Kuznetsova and the journalist’s mother said that she may have been transferred to another location, an allegation the prison administration has neither confirmed nor denied. During a prison transfer, which can take several weeks, the prisoner cannot be reached. 

“Russian authorities must immediately provide information on Nika Novak’s location and ensure her safety,” said Gulnoza Said, CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia program coordinator. “Her disappearance raises serious concerns for her well-being and underscores the ongoing risks journalists face in Russia.”

RFE/RL President Stephen Capus wrote in a December 2 statement: “It is deeply alarming that Nika Novak has vanished while in Russian custody. We are gravely concerned for Nika’s safety and demand that Russian authorities immediately reveal her whereabouts and allow her to contact her legal counsel.”

In recent months, Novak has been placed in isolation and solitary confinement several times, complained about a “dangerous” cellmate, and went on at least three hunger strikes to protest her detention conditions. On November 12, 2025, CPJ and nine partner organizations urged the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention to issue an opinion finding that Novak’s continued detention by the Russian government is arbitrary, and violates international law.

Russia is currently holding at least 28 journalists.

CPJ emailed the Ministry of Interior and the Prison No. 11 in Bozoy requesting information on Novak’s location but did not immediately receive a reply.