Russian police have placed Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, Lithuania's culture minister, and members of the previous Latvian parliament on a wanted list for allegedly destroying Soviet monuments, punishable by a 5-year prison term under Russian law. This move comes after the Baltic nations of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania demolished most of their Soviet-era monuments following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The Baltic politicians risk arrest if they enter Russia, but the practical consequences are unlikely. The Baltic states, members of the EU and NATO, have strained relations with Moscow, and the Russian Foreign Ministry has indicated that this is just the beginning of their response.
Russia has placed Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas on a wanted list, escalating diplomatic tensions between the two countries. The move comes after Estonia expelled a Russian diplomat over a spying scandal, prompting Russia to retaliate by expelling an Estonian diplomat. The Estonian Foreign Ministry has condemned Russia's actions, calling them "unfounded and absurd."
Russia has placed Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas on a wanted list, along with Estonian Secretary of State Taimar Peterkop, amid escalating tensions with the West over Ukraine. The move comes as Kallas has been a vocal supporter of Ukraine and has advocated for increased military assistance and sanctions against Russia. However, the practical implications of this action are limited due to the frozen Russia-West contacts during the conflict.
Russia has declared Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas a "wanted" person, along with other Baltic lawmakers, for hostile actions against Russia and the "desecration of historical memory," including the destruction of monuments to Soviet soldiers in World War II. Kallas has been a vocal supporter of Ukraine and has advocated for providing more arms to the country since Russia's invasion in February 2022.
Russia has placed Meta spokesperson Andy Stone on a wanted list, citing an article of the Russian Criminal Code, as part of its efforts to control the narrative amid the ongoing conflict with Ukraine. Stone, who has been with Meta for nearly 10 years, was previously involved in communication roles for Democratic organizations and lawmakers. After the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Meta limited the scope of Russian state-sponsored news on its platforms, leading to a ban on the use of Meta's sites and Twitter in Russia. Stone's arrest in absentia for promoting aiding terrorism was ordered by a Russian court in mid-November.
Russia has added Andy Stone, the communications director of Meta (owner of Facebook and Instagram), to a wanted list, following the country's classification of Meta as a "terrorist and extremist" organization. Stone's inclusion on the list, which was reported by Russian state agency Tass and independent news outlet Mediazona, comes without specific details of the charges against him. In March 2022, Russia's federal Investigative Committee launched a criminal investigation into Meta, alleging that the company's actions after the invasion of Ukraine incited violence against Russians. Stone had announced temporary changes to Meta's hate speech policy to allow for certain forms of political expression. Western social media platforms, including Facebook and Instagram, have been blocked in Russia since the invasion and are only accessible via VPN.
The spokesperson of U.S. tech giant Meta, Andy Stone, has been added to Russia's criminal wanted list, according to the country's interior ministry. The reason for Stone's inclusion was not specified. Russia designated Meta as a "terrorist and extremist" organization in 2022, leading to the ban of Western social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram in the country. In addition, Russian authorities claimed to have downed 24 Ukrainian drones following a large-scale aerial attack by Russia on Ukraine.
Russia has added Ukrainian singer Susana Jamaladinova, who won the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest under the stage name Jamala, to its wanted list. She is charged with violating a law that bans spreading fake information about the Russian military and the ongoing fighting in Ukraine. Jamala, who is of Crimean Tatar descent, won the contest with the song "1944," which refers to the year the Soviet Union deported Crimean Tatars en masse. Russia had protested the song's inclusion in the competition, but it made no specific criticism of Russia or the Soviet Union.
The FBI is conducting a search for Gregory Yetman, who was wanted for his involvement in the January 6 Capitol riots. Yetman, a former military police sergeant in the New Jersey National Guard, was seen in videos picking up a canister of pepper spray and spraying it towards Capitol police and protesters. Despite being identified and labeled as suspect #278 AFO, he had not been arrested or charged until now. The FBI is urging anyone with information on Yetman's whereabouts to come forward. Many individuals identified from photos and videos of the riots remain on the wanted list, and federal prosecutors have charged over 1,000 people in connection with the Capitol raid.
April Mae Holmes, a woman wanted on a warrant in Lancaster County, was arrested in west Lincoln after being recognized from the 10 most wanted list on Lancaster Lookout. Holmes had been wanted since October 2021 for failing to comply with the terms of her post-release. She had previously been found guilty in August 2020 for using an explosive device to damage property.
Dozens of Hong Kong residents are on the police wanted list for national security offenses, including for participating in crowdfunding drives. Most of the individuals have fled the city, with the majority believed to be in North America, Britain, or Australia. Insiders acknowledge that foreign law enforcement agencies are unlikely to assist in returning the alleged offenders to Hong Kong.
The member states of the International Criminal Court (ICC) expressed deep concern over Russia's decision to put a court prosecutor and several judges on a wanted list. The ICC's British prosecutor, Karim Khan, was added to the Russian Interior Ministry's wanted list, along with other judges. The ICC issued a warrant for President Vladimir Putin in March, accusing him of the war crime of illegally deporting children from Ukraine. The ICC finds these measures unacceptable and will remain undeterred in the conduct of its lawful mandate to ensure accountability for the gravest crimes of concern to the international community as a whole.
