A folklorist from Khanty-Mansiysk, a city in western Siberia, was sent to a punishment cell immediately upon arrival at the penal colony in Perm.

Folklorist and bard Valery Ledkov from Khanty-Mansiysk, a city in Western Siberia, was placed in a punishment cell (SHIZO) for five days immediately after his arrival at Penal Colony No. 29 in Perm, according to his lawyer Pavel Rusnakov.

The defence explained that in this colony, imposing disciplinary penalties on newly arrived prisoners convicted in political cases is a common practice.

In September, a court replaced Ledkov’s fine of 120,000 rubles (approx. US$1,300) with a three-year prison sentence over the FBK donations case, taking him into custody in the courtroom. Between approximately 21 October and 10 November, he was transferred between facilities; he spent five days in the punishment cell from 12 to 16 November.

60-year-old Ledkov was found guilty of financing extremist activity (Part 1, Article 282.3 of the Russian Criminal Code). Investigators allege that between August 2021 and February 2022, he sent seven donations to FBK totalling 2,100 rubles (approx. US$22).

A case was opened against him in December 2024. Before the sentencing, he was held under house arrest.

• Ledkov’s son, Konstantin Ledkov—who worked as a librarian in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug in northern Russia—has also faced criminal prosecution. In May, he was sentenced to five and a half years in a penal colony for a repeated display of banned symbols (Part 1, Article 282.4), “discrediting the army” (Part 1, Article 280.3), and calling for activities against state security (subparagraph “v,” Part 2, Article 280.4).
• OVD-Info has detailed the story of the persecution of Konstantin and Valery Ledkov.