In Novosibirsk, a major city in Siberia, one of the organisers of a protest against the mass slaughter of livestock has been detained.

Sergei Krupenko, one of the organisers of a rally against the mass seizure and slaughter of livestock in villages across Novosibirsk Oblast, was detained by security officers on his way to the event. This was reported by the Russian Communist Party.

According to the Telegram channel, Krupenko is being taken to the Central police station, where he had previously been summoned at 10:00 am. A lawyer from OVD-Info, Vasily Dubkov, arrived at the station at that time, but nobody came out to meet him.

11:32 Sergei Krupenko has been charged under the article on organising an assembly (Article 20.2, Part 8, of the Administrative Code) and detained for 48 hours until his court hearing. The Russian Communist Party reports that the protocol was drawn up in connection with the 1 March protest against the mass slaughter of livestock, which Krupenko is alleged to have organised in Novosibirsk, a major city in Siberia.

30 March The Central District Court of Novosibirsk fined Krupenko 250,000 rubles (approximately US$2,600). This was reported by activist Roman Malozemov on his Telegram channel.

• Throughout March, Siberian farmers have been protesting against the mass culling of cows, sheep, goats and pigs. Despite resistance, the killing of animals has continued. Since February, more than 2,000 head of livestock have been destroyed.
• Authorities have publicly explained the situation as outbreaks of pasteurellosis and rabies. However, no documents confirming that the animals have these diseases are being provided to the farmers. Read more about this here.