Russian priest arrested on way to hold Navalny memorial service suffers stroke in police custody

St. Petersburg priest Grigory Mikhnov-Vaitenko, who was arrested on his way to hold a memorial service for Alexey Navalny, suffered a stroke while in police custody and is now hospitalized, reports St. Petersburg Legislative Assembly deputy Boris Vishnevsky.

Mikhnov-Vaitenko planned to hold a service for Navalny at the Solovetsky Stone on St. Petersburg’s Troitskaya Square. He announced the service on social media on Friday. The next morning, he was arrested shortly after leaving his house.

According to OVD-Info, police charged him with organizing an unauthorized rally and planned to keep him in custody until the trial, which is scheduled for February 19.

Another priest conducted the memorial service, reported Bumaga.

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