TikToker Nekoglai Arrested in Moldova on Drug Trafficking Charges

Nikolai Lebedev, known online as Nekoglai, was arrested in Chișinău suburb on September 21, 2026, on suspicion of drug trafficking and operating a drug den. Moldovan authorities conducted a search of his home on September 16 in the commune of Stăucheni, where they discovered two packages of narcotics, scales, and equipment for processing and packaging drugs. The operation involved 16 total suspects, with 14 others arrested alongside Lebedev and his wife. Authorities seized drugs valued at over 2 million rubles across the operation, which resulted in 23 criminal cases and 58 violation protocols.

Lebedev allegedly used his TikTok following to recruit underage subscribers to his home for drug consumption. During arrest, he resisted law enforcement and assaulted officers; his wife, a Russian citizen, attempted to flee but was apprehended. Both were initially detained for 72 hours, then placed in pre-trial detention for 30 days. Under Moldovan law, they face sentences ranging from 7 to 15 years imprisonment on charges of unlawful distribution of narcotics in particularly large quantities.

Lebedev was deported from Russia to Moldova in 2022 following migration law violations after publishing a parody video mocking a Russian soldier. Ekaterina Mizulina, head of the Internet Safety League, stated in a Telegram post that the organization had information since 2022 that Lebedev and several colleagues were distributing narcotics in Russia, but legal action could not be taken at that time.