Ivan Golunov, a renowned anti-corruption investigative journalist in Russia, has been detained and beaten by police while in jail, in a case that has sent shockwaves across the country. Russian sources on Saturday say that he has wound up in the hospital due to the brutality he faced while taken captive by the authorities.

On Thursday, the reporter for the independent Meduza website was headed to meet a source, but was arrested by police in Moscow due to drugs that were allegedly found in his backpack.

But it's not all that it seems.

Golunov's lawyer Dmitri Dzhulai said that the arrest was purely a stunt to silence the reporter's work on corruption and members of the Russian business elite. He claims that the Russian police planted the drugs on him in order to arrest and charge him.

The Russian police charged Golunov with drug possession with the intent to sell, a crime that carries a possible 10 to 20 year prison sentence in Russia, the Guardian reported. Dzhulai said that the police pressured Golunov into signing a confession.

Russian journalists and human rights advocates demonstrated on Golunov's behalf, some carrying the slogan "I am a journalist, arrest me too." or "Freedom for Ivan Goluov." There were also protests interntionally, such as at the Russian embassy in Berlin.

The Medeza Foundation tweeted that if people want to help Golunov, they should read his English investigative report on predatory creditors.

According to the Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index, Russia ranks 149 out of 180 countries when it comes to journalistic freedom. Reporting on the war in Ukraine, Vladimir Putin's government and corruption is frequently censored.

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