Russia’s FSB Agents Recruited Former Pussy Riot Member to Spy on Artists
Rita Flores, the former Pussy Riot member whose real name is Margarita Konovalova, said in an interview posted on the Port Media YouTube channel that Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) recruited her to spy on artists and anti-war activists. Konovalova said she began working for the FSB in 2023 after pressure and threats against her family, following her 2020 jailing for participating in an anti-police brutality protest near the Kremlin. She described receiving an initial payment of 30,000 rubles (about $350) and later a regular monthly payment of 50,000 rubles (about $593) on the 15th of each month, with her last payment in June. Among the targets she named were street artist Philipp Kozlov (Philippenzo), performance artist Pavel Krisevich, and Pyotr Verzilov, and she alleged the FSB sought to lure Verzilov to Serbia for a kidnapping-and-killing plot, offering her 1–3 million rubles (about $11,000–$35,000).
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This story was covered in Censorship, Looted Treasures, and Artists Under Watch