Pussy Riot’s Nadezhda Tolokonnikova Headed For Siberian Prison

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Pussy Riot’s Nadezhda Tolokonnikova is being transferred to a prison in the city of Krasnoyarsk, 2,600 miles east of Moscow, in the heart of Siberia, according to her husband, Peter Verzilov.

“It’s 100 percent that it’s Krasnoyarsk region,” Verzilov told Rolling Stone during a phone interview. The information came from a source in Russia’s prison administration, Verzilov said.

Tolokonnikova’s husband believes his wife is headed for Colony 50, near the town of Nizhny Ingash, which is 190 miles from the city of Krasnoyarsk. This prison is in a much more remote location than Penal Colony No 14 in Mordovia, where Tolokonnikova was previously held.

“I think it could be a kind of revenge for what she has done,” Pavel Chikov, a rights defender and a close advisor to Tolokonnikova told Rolling Stone. “It will definitely cause a lot of trouble — it’s definitely not the most convenient place in the Russian Federation.”

Tolokonnikova has not been seen since October 20th when she disappeared from Colony 14.

On Sunday the Russian prison service told Interfax news agency that Tolokonnikova has been moved to another prison. This is the third prison that the Pussy Riot member has been in.

The Federal Penitentiary Service also said that Tolokonnikova’s family would be notified within ten days of her arrival at the new prison, per “regulations.”

Head to Rolling Stone to read their story in full.

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Michael Goldberg is a distinguished pioneer in the online music space; Newsweek magazine called him an ‘Internet visionary.’ In 1994 he founded Addicted To Noise (ATN), the highly influential music web site. He was a senior vice-president and editor in chief at SonicNet from March 1997 through May 2000. In 1997, Addicted To Noise won Webby awards for best music site in 1998 and 1999, and also won Yahoo Internet Life! awards for three years running as best music site in 1998, 1999 and 2000. Prior to starting Addicted To Noise, Goldberg was an editor and senior writer at Rolling Stone magazine for 10 years. His writing has also appeared in Wired, Esquire, Vibe, Details, Downbeat, NME and numerous other publications. Michael has had three novels published that comprise the "Freak Scene Dream trilogy": "True Love Scars," "The Flowers Lied" and "Untitled" which can be ordered here. His new book, "Wicked Game: The True Story of Guitarist James Calvin Wilsey," can be pre-ordered from HoZac Books. In November Backbeat Books will publish "Addicted To Noise: The Music Writings of Michael Goldberg," which can be be pre-ordered here.

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