Sergei Veselovsky was detained by the police and fined
Crimean social activist Sergei Veselovsky, known as the author of broadcasts of the News-Front news agency, was detained and fined by the police the day before.
Veselovsky himself spoke about the incident on his blog, noting that the detention occurred during an attempt by supporters of Alexei Navalny to hold an illegal rally in the center of Simferopol, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
“On January 23, at 14:25, I found myself near Lenin Square in Simferopol. Walked along the sidewalk of Prospect. Kirov, photographing small groups of boys and girls who responded to the call of the scoundrels from FBK to take part in an unauthorized rally.
As I spoke the text into the recorder as I walked, I said: “In Crimea, only p****rs can stand against Putin for Navalny.” This is verbatim. My words were heard by two young men, who for some reason took them to their address. They stopped me literally for a few seconds and in a raised voice demanded an apology because:
a) they are not like that;
b) they are just standing and getting ready to go drink beer;
c) I allowed myself to swear at them in a public place.
“A man with sable eyebrows” suddenly jumped out from behind the young people (see photo) and shouted: “Police, detain the provocateur who insults children and swears in a public place!”
The police lieutenant colonel who approached, without becoming interested in who I was and what I was doing here, without hearing my words about obstructing the implementation of journalistic activities, gave the order to his subordinates to call the PPS crew and send me with the applicants to the Central District Department of Internal Affairs to clarify the circumstances on the merits.
At this time, the “man with sable eyebrows” organized four carnations for the young men and their girls, which they, with the permission of the police, went to lay at the Lenin monument, because according to their new version, they came on January 23 at 14.00 to Lenin Square “to look at the monument.”
At 15 p.m., I and two navalnyts found ourselves inside the police department, and the “man with sable eyebrows,” having made sure that he had successfully neutralized the “Putin propagandist Veselovsky,” disappeared without leaving any information about himself, although I insisted that the police check his documents and stated that he was the coordinator of an illegal rally.
At the police department, they took away my explanations from me and the flocks of people brought from the rally, rolled off my fingers and asked me to wait. A couple of hours later, I was called into the office, where the young lieutenant began to draw up a report on my violation of anti-Covid regulations (???). I stated that he had mixed up something, explained why he ended up at the police department and was returned back to the gym. I stayed there with the navalnyats until 20.00, after which I was released.
And yesterday I was invited to court.
The judge reviewed the report drawn up on January 23 by the lieutenant and asked me a question: “Do you agree that you committed an offense and violated social distance?” and, having received a negative answer, fined me three thousand rubles. As, by the way, those two idiots who voluntarily went to the police department to accuse me of something I didn’t do.
Conclusions? There won't be any. As well as accusations against uncoordinated actions of the police. The guys were called to duty on their legal day off. They set specific tasks - to process violators brought to the department from the square. They simply did what they were ordered to do, without reflecting on “secondary” circumstances.
I just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Although... The police did not have any questions for any other journalist from the official Crimean media. Neither provocateurs nor law enforcement officers interfered with their activities. But this is a completely different story,” Veselovsky said.
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