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In Mytishchi, a city near Moscow, police detained four activists who blocked the road to prevent heavy machinery from entering Losiny Ostrov National Park. This was reported to OVD-Info by one of the detained activists, Irina Yelagina.
According to Yelagina, the activists were preventing work on the repair of a road that “does not actually exist.”
“Instead of a road, there is an overgrown settlement. The builders dumped asphalt chips directly onto the soil, which is prohibited by regulations because it is considered waste of the fourth hazard class,” a friend of the detained activists told OVD-Info.
The activists tried to block the heavy machinery attempting to drive to the site of the illegal road construction. However, the security forces roughly dragged the people away.
Among those detained, in addition to Irina Yelagina, are: Mikhail Rogov, Oleg Kapusta, and Irina Kuriseva.
Police also detained another person, but according to Losiny Ostrov defenders, this was a random passer-by. Their name is unknown.
20:45 All the detained activists have been charged with disobeying the police (Article 19.3 of the Administrative Code). They are being held overnight until the court hearing. This was reported by their lawyer from OVD-Info.
1 August The Mytishchi City Court fined Losiny Ostrov defenders Irina Kuriseva, Irina Yelagina, Sergey Vorobyev, Mikhail Rogov, and Oleg Kapusta 2,000 roubles (approximately US$22) each under the article on disobeying the police, writes “Govorjat Mytishchi.”
- Losiny Ostrov defenders have been protesting against the construction of the road through the park since 2023. Locals have held people’s gatherings at the construction site: for example, they tried to bury the road, “since if it’s allowed to carry out work without permits,” held a picnic, and played badminton. On 7 July, a fight broke out between the private security company guarding the contractor and activists trying to stop the construction machinery.