Andrei Kotov, a Russian man who had organized travel tours for LGBTQ+ people, has died in pre-trial detention in Moscow, rights groups and Russian media said on Sunday.
In November 2023, Moscow included the “LGBT movement” in a list of banned extremist groups, a move that effectively outlawed LGBTQ+ activism. In January, a nightclub owner was arrested for “extremism.”
Russia has increasingly cracked down on dissent since the start of the war in Ukr
Russia: Man accused of organizing LGBTQ+ tours dies in jail
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Andrei Kotov, the director of the travel agency Men Travel, died while in pre-trial detention in Moscow. Russia officially views the “LGBT movement” as an
Andrei Kotov behind glass in court
Andrei Kotov, the director of the Men Travel tour operator, was found dead in pre-trial detentionImage: Sergei Bulkin/dpa/picture a
Andrei Kotov, a Russian man who had organized travel tours for LGBTQ+ people, has died in pre-trial detention in Moscow, rights groups and Russian media said on Sunday.
In November 2023, Moscow included the “LGBT movement” in a list of banned extremist groups, a move that effectively outlawed LGBTQ+ activism. In January, a nightclub owner was arrested for “extremism.”
Russia has increasingly cracked down on dissent since the start of the war in Ukraine in February 2022.
What else do we know about Andrei Kotov?
Kotov, 40, was the director of the travel agency Men Travel.
Last month, he was charged with organizing and participating in “extremist” activities.
The OVD-Info rights group said that Kotov had been accused of creating an “extremist community” for profit and spreading “propaganda of an association recognized as an extremist organization and banned by the court [in Russia].”
Authorities did not specify what “extremist” association he was part of, according to the group.
The group said that Kotov reported having being beaten and hit with a taser during his arrest.
Investigators told Kotov’s lawyer Leysan Mannapova that Kotov had committed suicide, according to OVD-Info activists.
State news agency RIA Novosti also said Kotov had died by suicide. It cited a law enforcement official as saying that “cut wounds” were found on Kotov’s body.
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