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Four More Detained For Allegedly Attacking Police At July 27 Moscow Rally


Police stand guard during a rally to demand authorities allow opposition candidates to run in the upcoming local election in Moscow in August.
Police stand guard during a rally to demand authorities allow opposition candidates to run in the upcoming local election in Moscow in August.

Moscow police have detained four more men over an unsanctioned pro-democracy rally in the Russian capital in July.

The Investigative Committee said on October 14 that Yegor Lesnykh, Maksim Martintsov, Andrei Barshai, and Vladimir Yemelyanov were suspected of assaulting law enforcement officers during the rally on July 27.

According to the statement, two more unidentified suspects in the case had been added to the wanted list.

Several sanctioned and unsanctioned rallies took place in Moscow over the summer in protest of a decision by the authorities to deny independent and opposition candidates from running in the September 8 municipal elections.

Dozens of protesters have been fined or given jail sentences for organizing and participating in the unsanctioned rallies.

Law enforcement has been criticized for its heavy-handed tactics during the rallies, and the judiciary has since taken a similar hardline approach.

Five other men were charged similarly with assaulting police and handed stiff sentences. In one case, after a sharp public outcry over the court's approach, one of those convicted had their prison term changed to a suspended sentence.

RFE/RL has been declared an "undesirable organization" by the Russian government.

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