Press Release, 17.08.2023

Photo: Denis Shadrin and Polina Kuskova / Photo from the personal archive

On 17 August, at 6 a.m., three police officers in civilian clothes with two witnesses came to the apartment of members of the Yabloko party, spouses Denis Shadrin and Polina Kuskova. Laptops, phones, bank cards, cash, and passports were seized from Denis and Polina. After that, Shadrin and Kuskova were taken for interrogation. Their status in the criminal case on the “undesirable organisation” – the Golos movement of election observers – is witnesses.

According to the decision on “urgent investigative actions”, dated 17 August, a criminal case on the grounds of a crime (Article 284.1 Part 3 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) was also initiated on 17 August. The investigator of the Investigative Committee for the Tverskoy district of Moscow issued a search warrant. The search was carried out at the apartment of Denis Shadrin, but it was also decided to take Polina Kuskova for interrogation.

From 2006 to 2020, human rights activist Denis Shadrin was one of the leaders of the Kirov branch of Yabloko and participated in election observation. Now Shadrin is an ordinary member of the party.

Polina Kuskova has been a member of the party since 2019, and has been a member of the Bureau of the Kirov branch of Yabloko since 2021.

Earlier it was reported that a search was also held at the home of Ksenia Cherepanova, a former coordinator of the Novgorod branch of the Golos election observers movement, a member of the  Bureau of the Novgorod branch of Yabloko and a candidate for the Novrogod City Duma. In addition, party supporters Vladimir Zhilkin in Moscow and Eldar Baimuratov in Chelyabinsk were summoned as witnesses in the Golos case.

UPDATE. August 17, 5:40 p.m. It was reported known that the home of Denis Shadrin’s mother was also searched.

Read more about the persecution of Yabloko members since the start of the “special operation”.