Apparently not content with the worldwide condemnation they've already received over the conviction of Pussy Riot, Russian authorities are now searching for more band members on more criminal charges. But it's not clear that Russian police or prosecutors know the identities of the band members. If they do, they're not sharing. "A police spokeswoman in Moscow's central district confirmed by telephone that other, unidentified members of Pussy Riot were being sought under a criminal case that was now separate from the case against the three performers who were tried," Reuters' Steve Gutterman reported on Monday. The Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported that police were searching for "the fourth and fifth participants in a protest ...  in Moscow’s largest cathedral." 

In the "Punk Prayer" video, for which Yekaterina Samutsevich, 30, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, 22, and Maria Alyokhina, 24, were convicted of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred and sentenced to two years in prison, four members can be seen on the stage at Moscow's Christ the Saviour Cathedral. Another presumably holds the camera. But Reuters reported last week that the band has "about 10 to 20 members at any given time, and no fixed lineup." Members told Reuters they were planning more protests, and on Friday it released a single called "Putin Lights Up the Fires," which The Guardian translated. Now that they've got the world's attention, this is a really good time for Pussy Riot to get more active. Except for the annoying detail that they also have the police's attention, too.

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Adam Martin