An Estonian reporter detained on Thursday in the western Russian city of Pskov did not have accreditation to work as a journalist in Russia, a police source said on Friday.
The Estonian public broadcasting company ERR reported on Thursday that its employee Igor Taro was detained in Pskov earlier in the day while covering Russia’s presidential campaign in the run up to the March 4 elections.
He was apprehended while filming election campaign billboards, and his video material was seized, ERR news chief Urmet Kook said.
Kook said the journalist displayed his passport and a journalist visa to police officers, which he already used on several occasions during his trips to Russia.
“A police officer told him that it means nothing and he [Taro] needed a special accreditation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” Kook said.
Taro was released after spending three hours at a police station, he said, adding that the police had confiscated a memory card with all his video material and promised to return it empty later.
The police source said the memory card with untouched video files “has been returned” to Taro.
There have been no official comments on the situation as of yet.
