Russian court sentences Dozhd chief Mark Ten to five years in absentia

Sentence, in absentia

5 years in a prison colony

A Moscow court sentenced Mark Ten, director general of the channel Dozhd (TV Rain), to five years in a general-regime prison colony in absentia, Moscow prosecutors said. He was tried for organizing the work of an "undesirable organization".

Russia's prosecutor general declared Dozhd "undesirable" in July 2023. Ten became director general in April 2024, succeeding founder Natalia Sindeyeva, and investigators say he helped lead the channel until September 2026.

Ten and Sindeyeva were arrested in absentia in September, and Dozhd host Mikhail Fishman is being tried in a similar case. Other staff face in-absentia cases over "fake news" about the military and foreign-agent rules.