Ex-Pussy Riot Member Says She Was Coerced Into Spying for FSB on Kremlin Critics

Rita Flores, a former member of the Pussy Riot protest group, has revealed she spent years being coerced into cooperating with Russia's FSB security service, collecting information on anti-war activists and other Kremlin critics.

In an interview with exiled outlet Port, Flores said the arrangement began after a February 2023 raid on her Moscow apartment. She claims FSB officers forced her to sign a cooperation agreement by threatening her with criminal prosecution over social media posts about alleged Russian war crimes in Ukraine, alongside threats to kill her relatives.

Working under the codename "Harley," Flores said she was tasked with compiling detailed profiles of Russian artists and political dissidents. Between early 2024 and June, she received monthly payments of 50,000 rubles (about $600), after an initial payment of 30,000 rubles ($360).

Flores says she spent more than two years deliberately undermining her assignments, staging fake personal disputes with targets such as artists Philippenzo and Pavel Krisevich to delay their arrest by authorities.

Plot Against Former Partner

In mid-2025, Flores says she was ordered to lure her ex-boyfriend and fellow former Pussy Riot member Pyotr Verzilov to a cafe in Serbia, where undercover FSB agents allegedly planned to kidnap and kill him. She says she was offered 3 million rubles (about $36,000) to take part.

Flores refused to help carry out the plot, stalled her handlers, and sought assistance from human rights lawyer Dmitry Zakhvatov. Exiled businessman Leonid Nevzlin later helped her leave Russia earlier this month.

The Moscow Times said it could not independently verify Flores' claims.