Two Pussy Riot members arrested in Moscow, accused of violating ‘self-isolation regime’

Pussy Riot members Maria Alyokhina and Rita Flores were arrested while exiting a shop on Moscow Nakhimovsky Avenue around noon local time on Wednesday, November 4. 

Alyokhina, who informed Mediazona about the arrests herself, said that she and Flores were arrested along with two other people. Law enforcement officers did not give a reason for the arrests and “shoved [us] roughly into an unmarked white an,” Alyokhina said.

The detainees were taken to a police station in Moscow’s Akademichesky District. According to OVD-Info, police officers there added surveillance camera footage from the shop to a case file, claiming that Alyokhina and Flores had violated the “self-isolation regime” because they weren’t wearing gloves.

Alyokhina and Flores were released just before 5:00 p.m. local time, after receiving protocols, said OVD-Info legal aid coordinator Anna Romashchenko.

On October 7, Pussy Riot activists hung rainbow flags from key government buildings in downtown Moscow, in a protest action calling for support for LGBTQ rights. The protest action was timed to coincide with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s 68th birthday.

Two days later, Pussy Riot member Alexander Sofeev was sentenced to 30 days arrest for repeatedly violating regulations on conducting public events. Nine other people, including Alyokhina and Flores, were also arrested, but were all released under the obligation to appear in court.