An administrative case has been opened against separatist leader Pavel Gubarev under Russia’s law on “discrediting” the armed forces, according to information from the Moscow City Court case database. The case was registered Feb. 18 in Moscow’s Tagansky District Court.
The court listing says that a “P. Yu. Gubarev” is being held liable under Part 1, Article 20.3.3 of Russia’s Code of Administrative Offenses, a statute which carries a fine of up to 50,000 rubles ($650). The initials match those of the former self-styled “people’s governor” of Ukraine’s Donetsk Region.
Speaking with the media outlet RBC, Gubarev said he does not know what prompted the case. “Whether this is someone’s intent, I don’t know — I can only assume that someone didn’t like my publications. I assess the fact as utterly senseless stupidity. I don’t expect any consequences for myself,” he said.
In the spring of 2014, at a time when Kremlin operatives were partnering with pro-Russian elements on the ground as part of an effort to destabilize parts of eastern and southern Ukraine, the Siverodonetsk native Gubarev became one of the leaders of pro-Russian forces in the Donbas. In March 2014, at a rally in the city of Donetsk, he was proclaimed “people’s governor,” although he never took up an official post in the organization of the self-proclaimed “Donetsk People’s Republic.” After returning to Russia and the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Gubarev joined the Russian army as a private.
He runs a Telegram channel with about 25,000 subscribers.
In 2023, Gubarev was detained outside Moscow’s Meshchansky District Court after a decision was announced to arrest former “DPR defense minister” Igor Strelkov (Girkin). At the time, Gubarev publicly supported Strelkov, saying he had “always subjected the actions of the leadership of the [Russian] Defense Ministry to well-founded criticism.” After his remarks, Gubarev was led away by law enforcement officers.