A member of Russian activist group Pussy Riot has been taken to hospital in Moscow in a “very serious condition,” with family and fellow activists saying they suspect he was poisoned.
Pyotr Verzilov, who was jailed for 15 days in July for invading the pitch of the World Cup final to protest human rights abuses, was taken to the hospital on Tuesday after he fell ill shortly after attending a court hearing for another activist, the BBC reported.
His partner, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, another prominent activist for the group, tweeted: “Pyotr may have been poisoned. In the toxicology department in a very serious condition.”
Tolokonnikova, who in 2012 was sentenced to two years in prison over a Pussy Riot performance in a cathedral, told independent outlet Meduza that Verzilov first showed signs of discomfort a few hours after the Tuesday hearing. “First it was his vision, then his ability to speak, and then his ability to walk,” she said.
A tweet from the official Pussy Riot Twitter account overnight said Verzilov was now “in reanimation.”
Our friend, brother, comrade Petr Verzilov is in reanimation. His life is in danger. We think that he was poisoned. https://t.co/BYVl4rir1a
— ????? ???? (@pussyrrriot) September 12, 2018