Moscow (AFP) - Russian woman Marina Ovsyannikova was arrested Wednesday on charges of "defaming" the army, the lawyer of the journalist who became famous after boycotting a news broadcast of a Russian state channel with a poster against the attack in Ukraine announced.

"We are currently with the investigators," lawyer Dmitry Zakvatov told AFP. An investigation has been launched against Ovsyannikova for "disseminating false information" about the Russian army.

He then added that it was "turned off".

Ovsyanikova became famous in mid-March, after appearing during a news broadcast on the pro-Kremlin TV channel where she worked, holding up a banner denouncing the attack on Ukraine and the "propaganda" of the media controlled by the government.

At the end of July, she was fined 50,000 rubles (800 euros).

Ovsyannikova, 44, was convicted at the time because she declared the operation in Ukraine a "crime" while speaking to reporters on July 13 at a hearing regarding imprisoned dissident Ilya Yashin.

Four days later, the journalist was briefly arrested in the Moscow region.