This Selfie Video Got Two Influencers Arrested in Russia

Three young people take a selfie in front of a fire with large black smoke rising in the background, appearing relaxed despite the emergency behind them.
These two influencers were arrested for filming a selfie video in front of a drone strike in Russia.

Two women have been arrested in Russia for filming a selfie video in front of a Ukrainian drone strike in the country.

Influencers Dasha Vladimirovna, 21, and Karina Evgenyevna, 19, have been arrested after posting a TikTok video showing themselves posing in front of a burning oil depot in Sochi, Russia.

The video, which has been widely shared online, shows the two women standing just feet from the flames. The fire reportedly started after debris from a drone strike hit a fuel tank.

In the clip, Vladimirovna and Evgenyevna are seen rapping to Crimson Dawn, a song by Russian artist Endshpil, while large flames burn in the background. Thick smoke rises into the sky following the overnight explosion at the site.

Russian authorities later detained the pair, allegedly accusing them of glorifying the Ukrainian strike which President Vladimir Putin’s air defences failed to prevent, according to reports. Before the two women were identified, police put out a public appeal.

“During Internet monitoring, a publication was found of two girls filming a video against the backdrop of a fire in Sochi,” officials say. “The police have initiated an investigation, measures are being taken to identify the girls, and their actions will be legally assessed.”

Police later confirmed the women had been taken into custody for filming near the burning facility in Sochi. The two now face potential fines of up to $360. The investigation is reportedly ongoing and could lead to more serious charges for the influencers.

Vladimirovna and Evgenyevna were seen with another man in the video, but it’s unclear whether he was also arrested.

The drone strike, which hit deep inside Russian territory, is being described as one of the most high-impact attacks since the start of the war. The blast destroyed a large fuel tank at the oil facility and triggered a fire big enough to be seen throughout Sochi.

The incident comes after a Estonian museum director was charged last week for creating a poster featuring a composite photograph of Putin and Adolf Hitler merged into one face.

Meanwhile, a photographer was sentenced to sixteen years in a Russian prison for sharing a publicly available book and declassified archival photographs of Soviet bunkers. 35-year-old photographer Grigory Skvortsov, known for his images of industrial landscapes and rooftop views, was convicted of treason last month for sharing the images.


Image credits: Header photo via social media.

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