There have been calls for the resignation of Russia's top investigator following his apology in the wake of a newspaper's allegations that he delivered a death threat to one of the paper's editors.
There has so far been no public response from the Kremlin, meanwhile, to the admission on June 14 by Aleksandr Bastrykin, head of Russia's main federal investigating authority, the Investigative Committee, that he suffered an "emotional breakdown" in connection with the incident involving "Novaya gazeta" deputy editor Sergei Sokolov.
Calls for Bastrykin's resignation have so far come from some Russian journalists and from the White Ribbon civic movement, which has helped organize protests against President Vladimir Putin's continued rule.
The Russian government's human rights commissioner, Vladimir Lukin, has urged an official investigation of the incident.
"Novaya gazeta" is known for its critical and investigative journalism.
With reporting by Interfax