Alexander Serebryanikov

On June 19, 2013, it became known that a criminal case had been initiated, initially for incitement to hatred or hostility. Serebryanikov was initially questioned as a witness in this case. By August 13, it was revealed that Serebryanikov had been declared suspect and was placed under a measure of restraint, which included a release on his own recognizance. Two days later, on August 15, formal charges were filed against him.

The defense team argued that the case had originated due to the inclusion of a nationalist paragraph in an article on bloger51.com, dated March 5, 2013. This article was dedicated to the murder of Adil Nazim oglu Makhmudov, the former head of the Murmansk region's representative office. Serebryanikov asserted that the nationalist paragraph had been added to the article after the website was compromised by a hacker. Upon discovering the unauthorized alteration, he promptly removed the content and archived the news.

On December 5, Serebryanikov's residence was subjected to a search, during which his phone, computer, printer, bank cards, and certain books were confiscated. Subsequently, a court order mandated the return of the seized property by the end of the month.

During the course of the investigation, law enforcement officers from the Russian Investigative Committee insisted on a psychiatric evaluation for Serebryanikov, claiming that they had evidence that Serebryanikov wore a German Nazi uniform for a substantial period of time, and used the associated salute.

On April 4, 2014, it was revealed that Serebryanikov faced additional allegations related to promoting drug use, illegal trafficking in ammunition, tax crimes, and the use of pirated software.

The case proceeded to court on April 29, but on May 21, the court determined that further investigation was required. However, this decision was overturned by the second instance court on July 1st. In August, the case was reopened but ultimately dropped in March 2015 due to its expiration.