Russian soldier who threatened Putin with mutiny freed after 11 days in custody

Alexander Lunin, a Russian serviceman from the Voronezh region who threatened President Vladimir Putin with a mutiny, was released from administrative detention after 11 days, he announced on social media. His release was confirmed by independent outlets Meduza, Novaya Gazeta Europe, and Agentstvo.

Lunin left the special detention facility on July 8. In a short video posted early on July 9, he said he had "lost a bit of weight, grown a bit of beard, but everything is fine" and that he was in Moscow. Agentstvo reported that in a private message to an editor, Lunin confirmed his release with hugging and handshake emojis.

The day before, Vitaly Borodin, head of the Federal Project for Security and Anti-Corruption and a well-known informant, published a joint photo with Lunin and his wife. "Alexander Lunin is alive, healthy, everything is fine with him. We have been there all this time," Borodin wrote.

According to Novaya Gazeta Europe, 17 posts published between June 23 and June 26 disappeared from Lunin's Telegram channel after his release. Almost all were deleted early on July 9, shortly after the first post since his arrest appeared. The video address to Putin was also removed.

Lunin was arrested on June 27 on charges of displaying extremist or Nazi symbols (Article 20.3 of the Code of Administrative Offenses). The formal reason for the protocol is unknown. The same day, a search was conducted at his home in the village of Lizinovka, Voronezh region, where security forces seized computer equipment and storage devices. Before that, Lunin had traveled to Moscow at Borodin's invitation and stopped responding to messages.

Lunin recorded an address to Putin on June 25, demanding a personal meeting with the president and describing torture and violence in the army. If refused, he threatened that "the army will turn its weapons against the Kremlin." He later clarified that he was not calling for a coup but trying to convey the "truth" about the situation at the front. The Kremlin called the video "rather strange" and said it had not had time to review it.