In a Morning Raid, Russian Police Arrested Pussy Riot Member Peter Verzilov for His Alleged Role in Last Summer’s Anti-Corruption Riots

Russian police have detained
Peter Verzilov, a member of the Russian protest group Pussy Riot,
who they accuse of instigating riots last summer over corruption in
Moscow’s city elections.

After authorities broke into
Verzilov’s apartment yesterday, the post-punk feminist collective
posted news of his disappearance on Twitter.

Verzilov is a performance artist
and was among the protesters who invaded the soccer
pitch at the 2018 World
Cup Final in Russia to demand that the country release all
political prisoners. He was poisoned while in police
custody later that year,
after being arrested in what activists believe was a retaliation
for the World Cup stunt.

A statement from Pussy Riot
today says that 20 policemen and a police dog, led by three
officers of the Investigative Committee (Russia’s main federal
investigating authority) broke into Verzilov’s home at 7 a.m. on
Sunday using a sledgehammer and grinder. 

After allegedly entering without
a search warrant, they seized evidence that authorities said
confirmed Verzilov’s “involvement in the organization of the riots,
as well as confirming the involvement of others in the use of
violence against government officials,” according to a search
report obtained by Pussy Riot.

Without being able to contact
relatives or his lawyer, Verzilov was then interrogated for 13
hours by Rustam Gabdulin, the senior investigator and major general
of justice who is leading an investigation into the July 27
unrest. 

The riots last summer came after
rallies protesting Russian officials’ refusal to register
opposition and independent candidates for the city elections.
According to the statement, Verzilov was interrogated about his
connection to the rallies, how he “coordinated” the riots, and his
alleged ties to the Russian politician and anti-corruption activist
Alexei Navalny.

In their statement, Pussy Riot
says that on the date in question, Peter was in Estonia meeting
with the Estonian president. They also shared video footage of
police entering Verzilov’s home with a sledgehammer.

The statement goes on to say
that, immediately after Verzilov was released, he was attacked by a
“provocateur hired by Putin’s political police,” which gave the
authorities an excuse to arrest him again. He was charged with
“hooliganism,” for which he can be detained for up to 15 days.
After spending the night at the police station, Verzilov is
expected to appear in court today. 

“Most likely, he’ll get a few
weeks of arrests for ‘hooliganism,’” the statement says, adding
that “It’s still not clear what will happen with accusations of
‘organizing mass riots.’” The latter is a serious crime in Russia,
which is punishable by years in prison.

The group, which often faces
trouble with the law for its provocative performances opposing the
country’s oppressive regime, tweeted that the
whole ordeal is just another
“normal day in Russia.”

The post In a Morning Raid, Russian Police Arrested Pussy
Riot Member Peter Verzilov for His Alleged Role in Last Summer’s
Anti-Corruption Riots appeared first on artnet News.