A series of trials against local journalists who collaborated with pro-Kremlin publications Sputnik and Baltnews is kicking off in the capital of Latvia, Riga.

According to Delfi, 16 people are accused of violating EU sanctions, Ukrinform reports.

It is noted that prosecutors combined 14 cases into a separate proceeding. Six suspects will appear in court in April, May, and June.

The websites of Sputnik (blocked in Latvia in 2016, "mirror sites" blocked after Russia started a full-scale war against Ukraine in 2023) and Baltnews (blocked in 2019) are linked to the Russian state agency Russia Today (also blocked). According to the conclusion of the National Council for Electronic Mass Media (NEPLP), their activities pose a threat to Latvia’s security. Publications posted by these outlets support and justify Russia's actions in the war against Ukraine and "systematically incite national hatred."

The CEO of Russia Today is propagandist Dmitry Kiselyov, who has been designated by the EU. In December 2020, as part of the probe initiated by the Latvian State Security Service (VDD), Sputnik and Baltnews staffers were subjected to searches seven times. Computers, mobile phones, and storage media with professional and personal archives were seized. Latvian employees of Sputnik and Baltnews were charged with violations of the sanctions regime (Article 84 Part 1 of the Criminal Code of Latvia). They are facing up to four years in prison if found guilty.

According to the indictment, the journalists "deliberately and for selfish reasons provided a commercial platform to a sanctioned person."

Among the defendants is the former editor-in-chief of the Baltnews portal, Andrey Yakovlev, Latvian journalists Alla Berezovskaya, Alena Kirillova, Vladimir Dorofeev, Aleksandr Malnach, Andrey Tatarchuk, and Liudmila Pribilska, pro-Kremlin activist Vladimir Linderman, and MEP aide Sergey Melkonov.

Court hearings for the first six suspects are scheduled for April 11 and 13, May 17 and 29, and June 4 and 14. Vladimir Dorofeev was the first to appear before the court.