Sochi: Navalny’s supporter summoned to court

On October 13, Konstantin Gudimov, an activist, detained in Sochi with a balloon, was accused of violating the procedure of holding a public action.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that in the afternoon on October 7, policemen detained Konstantin Gudimov, an activist of the local Navalny’s office, near the Sochi Mayoralty.

"I was riding my personal bike along Navaginskaya Street, while having a balloon with the inscription ‘Navalny’ with me," Mr Gudimov himself told the "Caucasian Knot", describing the circumstances of his detention.

On October 13, a police major summoned Konstantin Gudimov and drew up a protocol against him. The senior officer of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) has decided that on October 7 by riding on his bicycle with a balloon "For Navalny" across the central Sochi Gudimov held an unauthorized public event, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

The police officer has obliged Konstantin to appear in court. Irina Barkhatova, another activist of Navalny’s office in Sochi, has associated the increasing pressure on Alexei Navalny’s supporters with the upcoming international festival of youth and students to be opened in Sochi on October 15.

"On the eve of the international festival, they decided to put all the activists of Navalny’s office and other dissidents in jail and intimidated with fines and harassments. However, we wouldn’t tolerate these acts of arbitrariness and falsifications," Ms Barkhatova told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.