Russian Arrested For Running Gay Travel Agency Found Dead in Cell

Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

A Russian man arrested in October for operating a travel agency for gay customers was found dead in his Moscow cell while in pretrial detention, the OVD-Info rights group said on 29 Dec. The group quoted the lawyer of Andrei Kotov (48) as saying the man had died by suicide in his cell, although the report cannot independently be confirmed.

Kotov was director of the Men Travel agency, and was facing charges of "organizing extremist activity and participating in it." Russia in recent years has intensified its relentless crackdown on LGBT rights, often accusing suspects of extremist activities.

Read more: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-lgbt-gay-travel-arrest-death/33257088.html

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The late Andrei Kotov in court (Photo: SOTA)

Authorities claim Kotov organized a New Year holiday trip to Egypt and a Volga River cruise centered around LGBTI+ themes.

Denying the charges, Kotov defended himself in court, stating that the tours were purely of a tourist nature and did not involve any ideological propaganda.

"The LGBTQ+ community in Russia has been under legal and public pressure for over a decade but especially since the Kremlin sent troops to Ukraine in 2022. Russian leader Vladimir Putin has argued that the war is a proxy battle with the West, which he says aims to destroy Russia and its “traditional family values” by pushing for LGBTQ+ rights."

Source:

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/russian-man-arrested-for-allegedly-running-gay-travel-agency-dies-in-custody


Helmeted riot police detain LGBTQ+ rights activists during a St Petersburg march. (Getty)



One of Russia's most famous sons, the man who composed "Swan Lake" and "The Nutcracker," was LGBTQ+.