Russian police have detained Anastasia Vasilyeva, the doctor-turned-activist linked to jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, near her Moscow office, her lawyer said Wednesday.
"She was detained. It is not yet clear why. Perhaps they want to forcibly take her to court. Today is just a court hearing on the case of ‘sanitary standards’ violations," lawyer Dmitry Dzhulay told the state-run TASS news agency.
As a defendant in the so-called “sanitary case” that saw several Navalny allies charged for calling for mass protests against his jailing in January, Vasilyeva is barred from leaving home between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.
Russia’s Federal Prison Service previously asked for Vasilyeva to be transferred to pre-trial detention because she broke this curfew by a few minutes several times, TASS reported.
In a video published by fellow Navalny ally Oleg Stepanov, Vasilyeva can be seen filmed trying to shake her arm free from officers as they attempt to lead her away.
Vasilyeva, who is Navalny’s personal doctor in addition to heading the independent Doctors’ Alliance union, rose to prominence last year for criticizing the government's coronavirus response and distributing aid to underfunded regional doctors.
The Doctors’ Alliance was labeled a “foreign agent” earlier this year.
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