Armchair Explorer · Tuesday, October 20, 2026
Explorer Charlie Walker recounts being detained by police in Tiksi, Russia, put on trial, and imprisoned for nearly four weeks after finishing a 600-mile trek across Siberia. He was charged with conducting journalism on a tourist visa, asking provocative questions about the military operation in Ukraine, and photographing restricted military sites before being deported.
“The judge told me what the charges were, and there were three of them. conducting journalism on a tourist visa. The second charge was more worrying. The second charge was that I had been asking provocative questions about their special military operation. And the third charge, most worryingly of all, was that I had been photographing restricted military sites.”
“I was found guilty, unsurprisingly. 399 out of 400 defendants in Russian court cases are found guilty these days. The penalty was a five-year ban from Russia, a fine of 5,000 rubles, roughly 50 pounds, about $80 roughly, and deportation.”