Five divers have just completed their search of a lake near Anna Mikhalchuk's home and about 90 police officers with sniffer dogs have combed the nearby area and railroad tracks, but no trace of the missing woman has been found, the officer said.
Mikhalchuk, 52, also known as Anna Alchuk, has lived in Berlin since November 2007 along with her husband, Mikhail Ryklin, a philosophy professor with the Humboldt University of Berlin. Mikhalchuk also teaches at the university.
In Russia, Mikhalchuk was charged with inciting religious hatred after taking part in a controversial art exhibition dealing with the topic of religion in 2003, but was acquitted in 2005.
German police said that although Mikhalchuk had reported receiving death threats nothing so far had prompted them to believe that her disappearance was linked to her life or activities in Russia.
Mikhalchuk's husband contacted police late last Friday, saying that his wife had left home at about 3:30 p.m. and had failed to return by midnight. Ryklin said his wife had gone shopping, but all shops were closed on that day, which was Good Friday.
Much of the artwork displayed at the 2003 Moscow exhibition, which was entitled 'Caution, Religion!, was vandalized during the show. These included a painting of Jesus Christ's face imposed on a Coca-Cola logo next to the words "This is My Blood."
The vandals were charged with hooliganism, but cleared after the Orthodox Church and several members of parliament stepped in, angering human right activists and triggering complaints that the freedom of expression was being restricted in Russia.
