A court in Moscow fined two participants in single pickets in support of Ivan Golunov

The Nikulinsky District Court of Moscow imposed fines of ten thousand rubles on the editor-in-chief of “Takih Dela” Anastasia Lotareva and the publication’s journalist Sergei Karpov for single pickets near the court in which a preventive measure was chosen for Ivan Golunov. Lawyer Natalia Morozova, who represented the journalists in court, told OVD-Info about this.

Lotareva and Karpov were found guilty in accordance with Federal Law No. 54 “On meetings, rallies, demonstrations, processions and pickets,” according to which it is prohibited to hold single pickets near the judicial building (Article 8, paragraph 2, subparagraph 3). They were given minimal fines.

Journalists' pickets took place on June 8, also near the Nikulinsky court building, where at that moment a preventive measure was being chosen for Meduza correspondent Ivan Golunov in a drug trafficking case. After their arrest, Lotareva and Karpov were taken to the Ramenskoye police station, where reports were drawn up against them under Part 5 of Article 20.2 of the Administrative Code (violation of the rules of the event by the participant).

• Investigative journalist Ivan Golunov was accused of trying to sell drugs. During the first days after Golunov's arrest, journalists and activists held pickets in his defense. On June 11, the case was dropped , but they decided not to cancel the action planned in Moscow in support of Golunov. Its participants demanded an investigation into fabricated criminal cases, reform of Article 228 and the release of innocent people.
• In total, according to OVD-Info, at least 530 people were detained during the uncoordinated march on June 12 in Moscow. Among those detained, according to Meduza, are about forty journalists.