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Сourt in Russia’s Vladivostok sends anti-war activist to mental hospital for forced treatment

The Insider

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Vladivostok’s Pervorechensky District Court has ruled that activist and musician Sergei Tokhteev undergo a mandatory 30-day psychiatric evaluation in a hospital, according to a report by Telegram channel Tayga citing a statement by the man’s friend.

Tokhteev is set to be held at Regional Clinical Psychiatric Hospital № 1, as per the court's decision on June 28. State investigators had submitted a petition requesting the activist be sent to the clinic, which the court approved.

Tokhteev is facing five criminal cases related to “discrediting the [Russian] army.” In 2022, he was fined for “discrediting the army” over social media posts criticizing the war. In February 2023, police raided the man's home.

“They used physical force, a stun gun, took all the equipment, his phone, computer, laptop, and since then he lost access to his page [on the ‘VKontakte’ social network], as it was tied to a SIM card, which was confiscated,” the source cited Toktheev’s girlfriend as saying.