Kirov activists fined 100,000 rubles for police work at a rally in support of Navalny

In November 2021, a court in Omsk exacted 460,000 rubles from Navalny’s supporters for police work at the January 23 rally. Olga Kartavtseva, Daniil Chebykin, Roman King and Vitaly Shipitsin were defendants in a lawsuit filed by the regional department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in May.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs demanded to recover more than 450 thousand rubles from them, which the police allegedly spent additionally on compensation to police officers for working on a day off and on gasoline for official cars. 24 people were detained at the action on January 23 in Omsk.

In October, the court awarded Daniil Chebykin and another activist, Nikita Konstantinov, 1.6 million rubles in compensation for police work on the January 31 protests. Then Chebykin was considered one of the organizers of the rally in support of Navalny.

Similar decisions were taken by the courts of other regions. In August, a Penza court exacted 550,000 rubles from three Navalny supporters as compensation for the work of employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs on a day off on January 23 at a protest rally.

On January 23 and 31, as well as on February 2, 2021, actions were held throughout Russia in support of the arrested opposition politician Alexei Navalny. The authorities immediately responded to the protests with large-scale repression, including searches, mass administrative arrests. In total, more than 11 thousand people were detained in connection with actions in support of Navalny. In Moscow alone, more than 1,250 people were subject to administrative arrest in a month for taking part in the protests. Also, about 90 criminal cases were initiated: on attacks on security forces, hooliganism, damage to property, road closures, violation of sanitary and epidemiological rules and involvement of minors in illegal actions.

In June, the Moscow City Court recognized the Anti-Corruption Fund (FBK), the Fund for the Protection of Citizens’ Rights and the headquarters of Alexei Navalny as extremist organizations. A law was also passed prohibiting persons involved in the work of extremist organizations from participating in elections.