The initiation of the criminal case was reported by the Investigative Committee on its official Telegram channel, specifying that the issue of declaring the writer wanted is currently being considered.
The reason for the prosecution was a video "on one of the video hosting platforms" containing "deliberately false information about the actions of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation against the civilian population of Ukraine".
Bykov is also suspected of not providing the authorized body with information "the provision of which is required by law" as a "foreign agent".
* Recognized as a "foreign agent" in Russia.