Two Volgograd journalists have been arrested in connection with an extortion case.

Investigators reported the arrest of two journalists in Volgograd in connection with the extortion of over a million rubles from the head physician of a clinic and defamation.

A criminal case has been opened against two journalists from Volgograd, suspected of extorting over 1.2 million rubles from the head physician of a city clinic, the press service of the Investigative Committee of Russia for the Volgograd Region reported.

According to investigators, the head physician of a Volgograd clinic contacted law enforcement this spring. She claimed that unknown individuals were extorting over 1.2 million rubles from her. It was discovered that the pressure was exerted on her through an anonymous Telegram channel run by the suspects, which has a large audience. This channel published information about her and her loved ones that was untrue and damaging to her reputation. The channel's creators then contacted the doctor and demanded payment to cease publication and delete existing materials.

The case has been classified under Part 3 of Article 163 (extortion committed by a group of persons by prior conspiracy on an especially large scale) and Part 2 of Article 128.1 of the Russian Criminal Code (slander committed publicly via the internet). The suspects are currently in custody, according to investigators.

The suspects are journalist Vitaly Koshelev, a VolSU graduate whose work has been repeatedly published in the online publication "Volgograd News," and cameraman Alexey Serov. According to open sources, he previously worked for a well-known Russian federal channel. On social media, he lists himself as a graduate of Volgograd State Technical University. According to contractor verification services, he is registered as an individual entrepreneur specializing in the production of films, videos, and television programs. He is also listed as the director and sole founder of the television agency "Seria," which was liquidated in 2009, V1 reports.

"Caucasian Knot" also wrote that blogger Alexei Ulyanov, detained by security forces in Volgograd, was hospitalized after being arrested on extortion charges, and was then transferred to a pretrial detention center. According to investigators, he demanded money for not posting information undesirable for businessmen. On December 4, 2025, he was arrested for two months.