Today at 4 a.m., the body of Andrey Kotov was found in the cell of the Vodnik detention center, the information was confirmed by a lawyer to OVD-Info*. According to the investigator, Kotov committed suicide.
The director of the tourist club Men Travel, Andrey Kotov, was detained on November 28. According to the investigation, he organized trips attended by supporters of the «LGBT** movement». Kotov himself said that he organized tours in the Moscow region, on the Volga. He noted that his phone contains a lot of data showing that the trips were purely touristic.
The court sent Kotov to the detention center until January 28. At the court session regarding the choice of preventive measure, the man said that during the search, a taser was used on him.
Almost immediately after the arrest, the man was placed in solitary confinement for 15 days.
A year ago, the Supreme Court declared the non-existent «International Public LGBT Movement» an extremist organization and banned its activities in Russia. After this, law enforcement initiated extremism cases against the owners and employees of bars in Orenburg and Kirov, where parties with drag artists were held.
This is the first case in Russia of a death in a detention center of a defendant in an «LGBT extremism» case.
* Recognized in Russia as a «foreign agent».
** Recognized in Russia as an «extremist» organization.
Photo: SOTAvision