22:55, 15 February 2024

Defender of "Memorial"* and Oyub Titiev arrested in absentia in Moscow

Ilya Novikov, photo: https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9D%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%B2,_%D0%98%D0%BB%D1%8C%D1%8F_%D0%A1%D0%B5%D1%80%D0%B3%D0%B5%D0%B5%D0%B2%D0%B8%D1%87

Ilya Novikov*, an advocate, who defended the liquidated Human Rights Centre "Memorial"** at trials, has been arrested in absentia.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that back in 2021, Ilya Novikov* represented the interests of the HRC ""Memorial"** during the trial on the liquidation of the HRC. He was one of the advocates for Chechen human rights defender, Oyub Titiev, who was convicted in 2019 on a trumped-up drug case.

Novikov* also ran other cases in Northern Caucasus, in particular, he defended Islam Tukhuzhev, a resident of Kabardino-Balkaria, sentenced to three years in colony for justifying terrorism, as well as Stanislav Klykh, a Ukrainian, sentenced in Russia to 20 years as a participant in hostilities in Chechnya in 1990s.

Novikov* has written about his arrest in absentia on the Facebook*** and posted a resolution to initiate a criminal case under the article on the dissemination of "military fakes."

"I really like the wording of the accusation: 'unfriendly attitude towards current authorities'," Ilya Novikov* has noted.

The reason for initiating a case of fakes against Novikov* was in his April 2022 interview for the YouTube channel "Popular Politics". In the fall of 2023, another criminal case was opened against him – on high treason in the form of passing over to the enemy's side, the ASTRA Telegram channel has noted.

In 2021, Ilya Novikov*, who was included into the register of foreign agents in November 2022, moved to Ukraine. According to the FSB (Russian Federal Security Service), there he "has undergone military training, and now takes part in hostilities" and "is engaged in propaganda work."

*Included by the Russian Ministry of Justice (MoJ) into the register of foreign agents.

**On December 29, 2021, by the decision of the Moscow City Court, the Russian legal entities of the "International Memorial" and the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial" were liquidated. Activists of the organizations have reported that both organizations will continue their work without forming legal entities.

***On March 21, 2022, the Tverskoi Court of Moscow banned the activities in Russia of the Meta Company, owning the Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, in connection with extremist activities.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on February 15, 2024 at 03:35 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Source: Caucasian Knot