In Yekaterinburg, a major city in the Urals, a solo protester was detained while holding a sign in support of Darya Kozyreva.

In Yekaterinburg, a major city in the Urals, civil activist Dmitry Rykov was detained after holding a solo picket in support of anti-war political prisoner Daria Kozyreva. His legal representative informed OVD-Info of the detention.

Rykov held his protest in 1905 Square in the city centre. His placard read: “Freedom for Daria Kozyreva! Poetry is not a crime.” He was soon detained and taken to police station No. 9. His legal representative has already arrived and was allowed into the station.

In March, Dmitry Rykov was detained during a solo picket in support of Yevgeny Roizman’s charitable foundation, which a month later was liquidated by order of the Ministry of Justice.

In April, a court in St Petersburg sentenced 19-year-old activist Daria Kozyreva to almost three years in a penal colony for repeat “discrediting” of the Russian army (under Part 1, Article 280.3 of the Criminal Code). She was accused of posting a quote from a poem by Ukrainian poet Taras Shevchenko on the anniversary of the war, as well as participating in an interview in which she condemned the Russian invasion.

13:30 Dmitry Rykov told OVD-Info that he had been released from the police station without a charge sheet. However, his placard was seized for examination, after which the police will decide whether to open an administrative case against him.

The news item has been updated to clarify the text that was on Rykov’s placard.