Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) has arrested Gonzalo Lira – a dual citizen of the United States and Chile who lives in Kharkiv – on charges of producing pro-Russian propaganda.
Lira, a prolific and controversial online personality, is accused of creating and distributing materials justifying Putin’s armed aggression against Ukraine. He faces a prison sentence of five to eight years.
Lira, a former online dating coach, was arrested at his home in Kharkiv on May 1, according to two sources familiar with the investigation. Ukrainian authorities claim that a search of his home uncovered further evidence of his illegal activities, including data found on his mobile phone and computer.
The SBU announced on Friday that an unnamed foreign blogger had been arrested, and the Kharkiv Prosecutor’s Office posted a blurry video of Lira on their YouTube channel. The Daily Beast has received a longer version of footage showing the arrest and raid on his home.
Lira was charged under Article 436-2 of the Ukrainian Criminal Code, Parts 2 and 3, which relates to war propaganda. He will remain in prison while the case progresses and an active investigation is ongoing.
An SBU spokesman said that after the full-scale invasion began, “the blogger was one of the first to support the Russian invaders and glorify their war crimes… Furthermore, in his comments he denied the details of Russian rocket attacks on Ukrainian cities and mass killings of civilians .”
Lira is a blogger who has made the transition from offering sleazy “dating coach” advice for men as the “Coach Red Pill” to propaganda fodder for the Russian state media eagerly picked up and disseminated his numerous dispatches from the Ukraine. In his videos, Lira insulted Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and described Ukrainians defending their country from Russian invaders as “armed criminals”. Ukrainian authorities allege that Lira filmed Ukrainian soldiers in a deliberate effort to capture their likeness and discredit their military service.
Lira also chronicled his efforts to follow American reporters covering the conflict in Ukraine, describing them as “system pig journalists”. reveal their whereabouts in certain hotels. Lira commented: “They are here to report how they led Ukraine onto the garden path and now Ukraine is f’d! These are the folks who drive the narrative for you to see. See her really well!”
American journalist Sarah Ashton-Cirillo, who currently serves in the Ukrainian Armed Forces, said she will be one of the witnesses in the criminal case against Lira. She told The Daily Beast: “That justice has been a long time coming. When I was accused by Maria Zakharova and the Russian Foreign Ministry last year of complicity in Gonzalo Lira’s disappearance, it apparently sparked a lynch mob from his supporters, who accused me of the murder. His arrest this week shows that Ukrainian officials are not bowing to popular pressure when a factual investigation uncovers the truth.”
Ashton-Cirillo added, “I submitted my affidavit regarding Gonzalo Lira to the SBU several months ago and expect to be called as a witness in his indictment.”
Lira accused Ukraine of being attacked by Russia and described the ongoing war as “one of the most brilliant invasions in military history”. He defended Putin’s motives, claiming that Russians would make special efforts to avoid damaging civilian infrastructure or civilians, and predicted that Ukraine would thrive under Russian control.
He floated a number of disproved conspiracy theories, including Russian claims that “American bioweapons laboratories” were located in Ukraine. Sources involved in the investigation say Lira’s appearance on The Donbass Devushka show prompted additional scrutiny of Lira’s activities, which were being monitored after his interrogation and release last year.
The online personality posted a series of videos and comments on YouTube, Telegram and Twitter, attempting to blame Ukraine for the strikes being carried out by the Russian Federation. Russian state television touted its video blogs as valuable reporting from an unbiased observer, with them on different shows and praised his efforts. Lira’s YouTube and Telegram followers combined total more than 300,000 subscribers.