Seven people were taken into custody during an investigative operation at Russia’s Sputnik-Azerbaijan news agency office in Baku on Monday, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Internal Affairs informed, Kommersant reports.

A criminal case has been opened on charges of fraud, illegal entrepreneurship, and money laundering.

Two of the seven people were arrested, and the remaining five were charged, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Internal Affairs said in a statement, APA reports. But the names of those involved in the case were not disclosed.

A day earlier, it was reported that the head of the Sputnik-Azerbaijan editorial board, Igor Kartavikh, and editor-in-chief, Yevgeny Belousov, were detained.

The Russia Today media group reported that members of the editorial staff who hold Azerbaijani citizenship were also among those detained.

Azerbaijani law enforcement agencies conducted an investigative operation at the Sputnik-Azerbaijan office Monday. According to local authorities, this news agency was supposed to cease operations in February, but the editorial office denies any official ban on its work.

The Russian foreign ministry had summoned the Azerbaijani ambassador over the arrest of the aforesaid Russian journalists. And the Kremlin hopes to have them released through direct contacts with Baku.