Russia: Opposition Activist Detained After Anti-Putin Report

Published: 02 September 2016

Ilya Yashin

Ilya Yashin (Photo: Rodrigo Fernandez CC BY-SA 3.0)

By Chris Benevento

Russian police briefly detained opposition figure Ilya Yashin on Thursday, two days after he released a report alleging widespread corruption by President Vladimir Putin’s United Russia party.

Yashin, a prominent member of the People’s Freedom Party, was briefly taken into custody after speaking at a party gathering on the street near Moscow’s Babushkinskiy metro station, Russian news agency Interfax reported.

A video of Yashin’s detention shows him being approached by a man in plain clothes flanked by several men in police uniforms. The man identifies himself as a police officer before the uniformed men take Yashin away by the arms and into a police car.

Yashin was held for several hours at Babushkinskiy station before being released, he said on his Twitter account. He said he was charged with "'illegal participation' in a gathering with voters."

Police did not respond to a request from OCCRP for comment.

Yashin on Tuesday released a 66-page report alleging deep connections between United Russia and organized crime and corruption.