Чудовский районный суд Новгородской области 10 октября оштрафовал на…

18.09.2025

12:52

The Zheleznodorozhny District Court in Krasnoyarsk, a major city in Siberia, fined a local resident one thousand roubles (US$11) because of music saved on their VKontakte page. The news outlet Prospekt Mira drew attention to the court’s ruling, published on the court’s website, reporting on the case.

The authorities’ attention was drawn to the tracks “Jackpot” and “Po Funku” from the album “Injection” by the band Tyazhyolaya Atletika. The cover for “Injection” references the iconic Pink Floyd design: a white beam passing through a prism and refracted into a rainbow. On the “Injection” cover, the prism is replaced by a syringe. The court regarded the rainbow on the cover as LGBT movement symbolism.

In addition, the court ruling states that one of the track titles contained a swastika. This symbol is no longer present in the track names from “Injection” currently available on VKontakte.

15.09.2025

14:06

Saint Petersburg

Nationalist Savva Fedoseyev has been sentenced to 15 days’ arrest over a photo of politician Alexei Navalny, reports “Bumaga.”

As clarified by SOTAvision, the protocol was drawn up because of a photo of Navalny at the Russian March.

The Kirovsky District Court of St Petersburg found Fedoseyev guilty of displaying banned symbols (Art. 20.3 of the Code of Administrative Offences).

On 18 September, the St Petersburg City Court reduced Savva Fedoseyev’s administrative arrest by two days. This was reported on the activist’s Telegram channel.

11.09.2025

18:44

Saint Petersburg

Mikhail Amosov, a member of the St Petersburg Legislative Assembly, has been fined for displaying banned symbols (Article 20.3 of the Administrative Offences Code) because of two photographs of Alexei Navalny, reports Bumaga.

The Kalininsky District Court fined Amosov 1,500 roubles (about US$16).

The protocol was drawn up following two posts on the deputy’s Telegram channel on the day of Navalny’s death, which featured photographs of the politician, clarifies Mediazona. In one of them, Amosov wrote that Navalny “could have been of use to the country if he were free.”

“I plead guilty. I did not know it was a violation; I had no intent, and I did not want to promote the Anti-Corruption Foundation or Navalny’s headquarters. I wanted to pay respects to Navalny, who I personally knew. Since I knew him personally, I thought it necessary to express my position regarding the death of the person. I did not know it was against the law, and I deeply regret and repent. I learned it was a violation of the law from journalists,” Amosov said at the hearing.

Bumaga notes that once the decision to hold someone liable under Article 20.3 of the Administrative Offences Code enters into legal force, they are barred from participating in elections for a year. On 20 September 2026, elections for the city’s Legislative Assembly and the State Duma will be held in St Petersburg. The decision in the administrative case will take effect in ten days, unless appealed—so in this case, on 21 September. If Amosov does not appeal or does not succeed in having the decision overturned by a higher court, he will not be able to run in the next elections.

25.08.2025

13:05

Moscow

Nikita S., a student at Moscow Technical University of Communications and Informatics (MTUCI), has been fined under the article on displaying prohibited symbols (Part 1, Article 20.3 of the Administrative Code) for a gif featuring a swastika, according to “Ostorozhno, novosti.”

The outlet does not specify which court issued the ruling. The amount of the fine is unknown.

At the beginning of July, an administrative protocol was drawn up against Nikita S. because of a message sent in January 2024 to one of the student group chats. At that time, he wrote: “The group is going to the consultation” and attached a gif taken from the computer game Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, which shows soldiers marching in uniforms bearing the coat of arms of Nazi Germany. The game depicts an alternative version of events from the Second World War, in which the Nazis have managed to capture the United States.

The student did not plead guilty and stated that he sent the gif “to show his negative attitude towards Nazism.”

“Ostorozhno, novosti” notes that officers from the Centre for Combating Extremism (Centre “E”) established the alleged offence two weeks after the ultra-right movement “Russian Community” accused MTUCI students of promoting Nazism. The accusations were triggered by several messages from students making jokes about topics related to Nazism and Hitler. Among them was Nikita S.’s message.

“There is open propaganda of Nazism in the student group chats, teachers are being given the names of the most brutal Nazi criminals who killed women and children in concentration camps, they approve the horrors of the Holocaust, incite interethnic hatred, and publicly insult members of the authorities,” the movement claimed.

At that time, the “Russian Community” asked law enforcement to look into this information.

22.08.2025

16:41

The Kurgan City Court has fined a local resident one thousand roubles (approximately US$11) for posting an image of Satan online. This was reported by RIA Novosti.

The man was found guilty under the article on displaying the symbols of an extremist organisation (Article 20.3 of the Administrative Offences Code). “The Kurgan resident was summoned to court for publishing an image of Satan, which has recently been recognised as extremist,” quoted URA.RU from a source in law enforcement.

It is believed that the case concerns Vladislav Pylkov, whose case file under this article has been published on the Kurgan City Court website.

Pylkov is a beauty pageant founder and organiser of a multi-championship event for beauty professionals in Kurgan, a city in the Urals. On 15 August—the day of the...

30.07.2025

20:53

Saint Petersburg

Ivan Apostolevsky, a member of the Legislative Assembly of Leningrad Oblast and leader of the Communist Party (KPRF) faction, has been jailed for seven days under the article on promoting the symbols of an extremist organisation (Article 20.3 of the Administrative Code). This was reported by RIA Novosti, citing the regional courts’ press service.

Apostolevsky was detained yesterday, 29 July, at Moscow Railway Station in St Petersburg while returning from a work trip to China. The reason for the prosecution was his posts about Navalny from 2017. The deputy denies having written anything about the politician on social media.

1 August Details emerged regarding the specific reason for Apostolevsky’s arrest. An explanation appeared on the KPRF website, which was noted by the Telegram channel “Govorit NeMoskva.”

The charge of promoting extremist symbols against the deputy did indeed stem from a publication about Alexey Navalny. The post included the cover of the communist youth newspaper LKSМ “Fonar” (“Lantern”), which featured a photo of Navalny. In his post, Apostolevsky also sharply criticised Navalny’s activities, using Lenin’s assessments of liberalism.

“Navalny appears on the cover of the newspaper ‘Fonar’—that’s true. But his photo is part of a larger image that includes accompanying text. So what does this text say? Is it in support of Navalny? Not at all—quite the opposite. Moreover, a person’s photo and the depiction of a symbol are, after all, different things, aren’t they?” commented Dmitry Novikov, chair of the KPRF Central Committee, on the situation.

On the page of the Leningrad Oblast branch of the KPRF, it was also reported that on 1 August the regional court rejected Apostolevsky’s appeal against his arrest.

29.07.2025

13:53

Ivan Apostolevsky, a deputy of the Legislative Assembly of Leningrad Region and leader of the Communist Party (KPRF) faction, was detained over posts about Alexei Navalny from eight years ago. This was reported by 47news.

Officers from Centre “E” detained Apostolevsky at Moscow Railway Station in St Petersburg as he was returning from a work trip to China.

The reason for the prosecution was Apostolevsky’s 2017 posts about Navalny. The deputy denies having written anything about the politician on social media.

“I don’t post anything like that at all—neither about extremism nor about Navalny. I haven’t been given the case materials yet. I’m sure it’s actually connected to the election campaign. And also to our principled stance on all the issues—about the factory, the waste reform, and the landfills. Do you think they just dug up something from 2017 for no reason?” the deputy told 47news.

15:05 Security forces also summoned Apostolevsky’s associate, Larisa Mukhina, to the police for a report to be filed. This was reported by SOTAvision.

Mukhina is the Communist Party (KPRF) candidate for governor of Leningrad Region. She is accused of violating campaign regulations because of a post on VKontakte. The complaint against Mukhina was filed by Maria Karpova, an employee of the administration in Kingisepp, a town near St Petersburg.

“Citizen Karpova filed a complaint with the police, allegedly claiming that I posted an illegal campaign announcement in the Southern Kingisepp VK group. Of course I don’t have access to that group and I didn’t make such a post. And just as I didn’t distribute illegal campaign materials on 12 July at the district party committee’s office,” said Larisa Mukhina.

23.07.2025

18:59

On 21 July, the Zelenograd District Court in Moscow fined an elderly former military officer with the surname Yegorov under the article on displaying banned symbols (Part 1, Article 20.3 of the Code of Administrative Offences). The decision was highlighted by “Govorít ne Moskva.”

The protocol against Yegorov was drawn up following a report by the chairperson of the same court, who contacted Centre “E” (Centre for Combating Extremism). In May, the elderly man lodged an appeal regarding his claim for delayed wages. According to the text of the ruling, the document contained propaganda for the “Citizens of the USSR” association, which has been banned since 2022. Law enforcement claim that, in this way, the man promoted the activities of the association.

Yegorov did not admit guilt, emphasising that he sent the appeal exclusively to the court and never published its text anywhere else. In his view, this means he did not promote the “Citizens of the USSR.” Nevertheless, the elderly man was fined. The amount of the fine is unknown.

12.07.2025

17:01

Moscow

44-year-old carpenter Dmitry Gerya was sentenced to five days of administrative detention because of a chain with a trident pendant. The local news outlet “Ostorozhno, novosti” (“Caution, News”) drew attention to a ruling by the Golovinsky District Court in Moscow ordering the resident’s arrest.

According to the court, on 6 July Gerya went outside wearing a chain with a white metal pendant shaped like a trident emblem. The court held that by doing so, he “committed public demonstration of the Nazi symbolism of extremist organisations” (part 1, article 20.3 of the Russian Code of Administrative Offences).

The man pleaded guilty and said that a friend had given him the chain 10 years ago.

“After drinking, he decided to put it on without paying attention to the image or the inscription,” the court ruling says.

In addition to the administrative detention, the court also ordered the confiscation of Gerya’s pendant.

07.07.2025

21:44

Saint Petersburg

The Smolninsky District Court of St Petersburg sentenced local resident Evgeny Elgin to 10 days of administrative detention. According to the court, he posted a comment in the Telegram channel of journalist Alexander Nevzorov, beginning with the words: “Glory to Ukraine—Glory to the Heroes….”

The court deemed this to be “the official greeting of the Organisation of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN),” which is designated as extremist in Russia. Elgin received administrative detention under the article on propaganda of Nazi symbols (part 1, article 20.3 of the Code of Administrative Offences).

01.07.2025

11:21

Saint Petersburg

The Primorsky District Court of St Petersburg has jailed St Petersburg State University lecturer Mikhail Suvorov for 10 days over a pro-Ukrainian social media post from three years ago, reports “Rotonda.”

His phone was also confiscated. Suvorov is a professor in the Department of Arabic Studies at the Faculty of Oriental Studies, St Petersburg State University. In March 2022, he published a post on VKontakte with a slogan in support of Ukraine. He was charged under an administrative article for displaying extremist symbols (Article 20.3 of the Russian Code of Administrative Offences).

In court, Suvorov expressed remorse, explaining that he had made the post for his Ukrainian friends and had forgotten to delete it.

2 July The management of St Petersburg State University launched an internal investigation in connection with Mikhail Suvorov’s administrative arrest. The university stated that the lecturer had submitted a resignation letter.

According to TASS, in addition to posting the slogan “Glory to Ukraine,” Suvorov’s page also featured symbols associated with the “Freedom of Russia Legion,” which is banned in Russia.

27.06.2025

18:35

Samara Oblast

Alexander Gabdulkhakov, a resident of Samara—a major city on the Volga River—was fined 1,000 roubles (approximately US$11) for posting a photograph of Alexei Navalny. This was reported on the website of the Promyshlenny District Court, as noted by Idel.Realii.

Gabdulkhakov was found guilty of publicly displaying the symbols of an extremist organisation (Part 1, Article 20.3 of the Administrative Offences Code). The reason was a post on VKontakte: a photograph of the opposition figure with the caption: “Alexei Navalny was taken to hospital during another arrest.” The court reminded readers that Navalny was the founder of the Anti-Corruption Foundation, which has been designated as extremist.

15.06.2025

15:29

Ryazan Oblast

The Zheleznodorozhny District Court in Ryazan sentenced local resident Andrey Vasilenko to 10 days of administrative detention. The reason for this was a pro-Ukrainian slogan. The court decision dated 6 June was noticed by the “7×7” news outlet.

According to the court, on 4 June, the man shouted the slogan “Organisation of Ukrainian Nationalists” in the courtyard of a residential building. The only slogan of this organisation, according to the Justice Ministry, is the phrase “Glory to Ukraine—glory to the heroes.”

The court’s press service stated that Vasilenko is a citizen of Ukraine. He did not admit guilt in the case, saying he had shouted the slogan while drunk and “was not aware of his actions.”

The court found the man guilty of promoting prohibited symbols (part 1 of article 20.3 of the Code of Administrative Offences).

11:50

Belgorod Oblast

A 21-year-old resident of Shebekino, Igor Sh., has been fined one thousand roubles (about US$11) by the court over memes about the “Belgorod People’s Republic.” This was reported by the “Ashes of Belgorod” Telegram channel.

The young man posted the images on Telegram back at the start of the war, on 8 April 2022. One image showed a blue-and-white flag with the coat of arms of Belgorod region superimposed. The coat of arms was placed within part of the large coat of arms of Ukraine.

The second image was of the “BNR” flag, which was a Ukrainian flag with a black stripe at the bottom. In the middle was the coat of arms of Belgorod region, with the caption “прапор” (Ukrainian for “flag”).

A protocol was drawn up against Igor Sh. under the article on public demonstration of banned symbols (Article 20.3 of the Code of Administrative Offences). In court, the Shebekino resident admitted guilt and said he posted the “BNR” memes because after the war started, he “became interested in the 'Belgorod People’s Republic' movement.”

He also explained that he did not delete the images after the “BNR movement” was labelled a terrorist organisation, because he forgot he had ever posted them.

At the end of 2024, the Supreme Court of Russia declared the “Forum of Free States of post-Russia” and the non-existent “BNR movement” as a “structural subdivision” of the “Forum” to be terrorist organisations.

The “BNR” meme (by analogy with “DNR” and “LNR”) originated after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began.

10.06.2025

16:00

Moscow

The Izmailovsky District Court in Moscow has sentenced a man to three days' detention over an “A.C.A.B” tattoo on his neck. The court’s ruling was highlighted by the outlet 'Ostorozhno, novosti'.

On 9 June, the court found Kuvonchbek Ruziboev guilty of displaying banned symbols (Part 1, Art. 20.3 of the Code of Administrative Offences).

The ruling states that on the morning of 6 June, officers from Centre “E” stopped Ruziboev for a document check.

“[Ruziboev] engaged in the public display of extremist symbols on the right side of his neck with an 'A.C.A.B.' inscription (from English: All Cops Are Bastards), which translates as ‘All police are bastards’ or ‘All police are scum,’ included in the official list of prohibited symbols,” states the court document.

However, neither the phrase nor the abbreviation are included in the federal list of extremist materials.

In court, the man admitted guilt and said he did not know the meaning of his tattoo—it was chosen by the tattoo artist. He also promised to have it removed.

“After officers from the Centre for Combating Extremism explained the meaning of the tattoo, he decided to have it removed; however, he has not yet done so, nor has he covered the neck area, and continues to display the tattoo in public,” the court resolution says.

Last spring, left-wing activist Alexei Shichkov was detained for ten days over a photo showing the numbers 1312, which stand for ACAB, drawn on a wall. At the time, the court ruled that the numbers 1312 incited hatred (Art. 20.3.1 of the Code of Administrative Offences).

09.06.2025

15:37

Kemerovo Oblast

Due to an erotic photo of a woman in the uniform of the German Nazi armed forces, Andrey O. from Kemerovo was fined one thousand roubles (approx. US$11). This was reported by the law enforcement-linked channel “Kuzbass Without Extremism.”

According to the channel, the man uploaded the photo—depicting a woman against a backdrop of a swastika—to his VKontakte page back in 2018. Nearly seven years later, it was discovered by law enforcement officers.

The Kemerovo resident had an administrative protocol drawn up against him under the article on the display of Nazi symbols (Article 20.3 of the Code of Administrative Offences), and the court fined him under that article.

06.06.2025

11:19

Saratov Oblast

On 9 April, the Kirovsky District Court in Saratov fined 68-year-old Alexander Chernenko, a native of Ukraine who is a Russian citizen, two thousand roubles (approx. US$22) over the Ukrainian coat of arms in the form of a trident. This was reported by the outlet Idel.Realii.

The man was found guilty under the article on public display of extremist symbols (Part 1, Article 20.3 of the Administrative Code). The protocol against Chernenko was drawn up after police found on his Odnoklassniki page a photo in which the elderly man was sitting at a table in a black T-shirt with the image of a Ukrainian trident and the words “Моя Украiна” (“My Ukraine”).

In April, the same court fined Chernenko 30,000 roubles (approx. US$330) under the article on discrediting the Russian army (Part 1, Article 20.3.3 of the Administrative Code). The reason for the fine was a repost on Odnoklassniki that “contained information discrediting the use of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.” The content of the post remains unknown.

25.04.2025

16:53

The Leninsky District Court in Yekaterinburg has sentenced Ural-based artist Alisa Gorshenina to 10 days in detention under the article on displaying symbols of an extremist organisation (Part 1, Article 20.3 of the Administrative Code). This was reported by the pro-government Telegram channel “URALLIVE.”

The court’s press service confirmed Gorshenina’s arrest in a conversation with SOTAvision. She was charged over alleged extremist imagery due to her participation in filming a Pussy Riot music video.

The authors of “URALLIVE” also reported that protocols have been drawn up against Gorshenina under articles on “discrediting” the Russian army (20.3.3 of the Administrative Code) and “promotion of non-traditional sexual relationships” (Part 3, Article 6.21 of the Administrative Code).

In 2022, Alisa Gorshenina was fined 35,000 roubles (approx. US$400) under the army “discreditation” article over an anti-war protest. She appeared outside the Mir children’s centre in Nizhny Tagil, a major city in the Urals, wearing black and holding a white rose. Ribbons streamed from the flower bearing the slogans “Эпир вӑрҫа хирӗҫ!” and “Кирәкми безгә сугыш!”—in Chuvash and Tatar these mean: “We are against the war!”

In 2024, following reports by pro-government activists, Gorshenina’s workshop at the Yeltsin Centre was cancelled. In summer 2024, Gorshenina gave a major interview to OVD-Info discussing the pressure she has been facing.

17:25 Alisa Gorshenina’s lawyer confirmed her arrest, and that two further protocols have been drawn up against her under administrative articles.

The administrative arrest was imposed after Gorshenina posted a rainbow flag emoji on her Instagram, which the security forces deemed extremist organisation symbolism.

23.04.2025

15:44

Chelyabinsk Oblast

The Chelyabinsk Regional Court has overturned the arrest of photographer Sergey Likhvatskikh over the letter “N.” He will be released after serving seven days in custody. This was reported by “Chelyabinsk Budushchego” (“Chelyabinsk of the Future”).

On 16 April, the Central District Court in Chelyabinsk, a major city in the Urals, sentenced Likhvatskikh to 11 days under the charge of displaying extremist symbols (Article 20.3 of the Administrative Code). The protocol was drawn up because of a post the photographer made on VKontakte on 2 July 2018 in a group opposing the construction of the Tominsky mining and processing plant. The post featured a photo of a banner with the letter “N”—the symbol of Alexey Navalny’s presidential campaign.

According to Likhvatskikh’s acquaintances, a certain citizen named Bogdanov lodged the complaint about the photo.

16.04.2025

14:12

The Central District Court of Chelyabinsk has sentenced photographer Sergei Likhvatsky to 11 days in jail over a photo featuring the letter “N.” This was reported by the Telegram channel “Chelyabinsk of the Future.”

The photographer was found guilty under the article on displaying extremist symbols (Art. 20.3 of the Administrative Offences Code). Likhvatsky was charged over a post he made on VKontakte on 2 July 2018 in a group opposing the construction of the Tominsky Mining and Processing Plant.

The post featured a photo of a banner with the letter “N”—a symbol of Alexei Navalny’s presidential campaign. According to Likhvatsky’s acquaintances, the photo was reported by a certain citizen named Bogdanov.

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