 Writing for The New Republic , Russian @-@ American journalist Julia Ioffe commented that by arguing that Samutsevich was innocent because she had not participated , Khrunova 's defense had implied that Tolokonnikova and Alyokhina had in fact committed a crime , and had cut off " the one path to redemption that the group actually had : ignoring the court ’ s proceedings and denying its legitimacy " . Some commentators saw Samutsevich 's unexpected release as a divide and rule tactic on the part of the authorities . Details later emerged of an alleged Nasedka ( " mother hen " ) , a prisoner who spies on fellow inmates and manipulates them into co @-@ operating with the authorities in return for privileges and early parole . A convicted fraudster named Irina Orlova was placed in the same cell as Samutsevich , where she apparently gained her trust and persuaded her to change lawyers . Any alleged agreement with authorities would have required Samutsevich to publicly denounce her former lawyers . 
