Russia’s Basmanyy District Court issued an arrest warrant for the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, on Tuesday, accusing her of being part of an “extremist” group. Navalnaya, who is currently residing outside Russia, would face immediate arrest should she decide to return.

Navalnaya was charged under part 2 of Article 282.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which punishes participation in an extremist community with up to six years imprisonment. The court approved a petition from Russia’s Investigative Committee to have Navalnaya committed to pretrial detention, which the court said would last for a period of two months.

Reacting to the decision, Navalnaya, 47, vehemently criticised the ruling, branding President Vladimir Putin as “a killer and a war criminal.” Navalnaya added that Putin’s “place is in prison, and not somewhere in The Hague, in a cozy cell with a TV, but in Russia – in the same colony and the same 2 by 3 meter cell in which he killed Alexei.”

Leonid Volkov, Alexei Navalny’s former chief of staff, highlighted the significance of the move by the “infamous Basmanny court,” acknowledging Navalnaya’s unwavering determination to continue her husband’s legacy against corruption and autocracy.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz condemned the warrant, calling it an attack against freedom and democracy. “After the death of her husband Alexei Navalny, she carries on his legacy — and with her, many Russians,” Scholz affirmed. Since her husband’s death in an Arctic prison in February, Navalnaya has pledged to further his fight, meeting with world leaders and advocating for democracy.

This comes as it was announced that contact had been lost with Russian opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza since his transfer from a prison hospital last week.