MOSCOW, June 11. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin is aware of the case of detained journalist Ivan Golunov, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, adding that the Kremlin was waiting for a forensic report on the case.

"He [the president] is aware of these developments," Peskov said.

"An investigation into the case is underway, we are waiting for news about a forensic test that is supposed to provide answers to a number of questions," the presidential spokesman added.

Golunov case

On June 6, Ivan Golunov, who works for the Meduza news website, was hauled off in downtown Moscow and taken to a local police station on charges of illegally producing, selling and transporting drugs. According to police, Golunov was carrying four grams of mephedrone, a synthetic stimulant drug, while five grams of cocaine were found during a search of his rented apartment.

Moscow’s Nikulinsky District Court placed the journalist under house arrest.

Golunov’s lawyer Dmitry Dzhulai said earlier that drugs could have been planted on his client. Meduza Director General Galina Timchenko and Chief Editor Ivan Kolpakov said that Golunov’s journalistic activities might be the true reason behind drug charges.

Golunov’s friends and colleagues have announced on Facebook that a march for his freedom will take place on June 12. According to the organizers, it will be a peaceful event so there was no need to receive any sort of permission from the authorities. Those partaking in the march will demand that the journalist be released from house arrest and that the criminal case against him be dropped. The organizers hope that Moscow city hall won’t try to prevent the march.