Political scientist Alexander Kynev, who was arrested for allegedly attempting to sell drugs, has been cited for violating “foreign agent” regulations.
It is unclear what prompted the citation, which was filed with Moscow’s Perovsky District Court on October 27. No hearing has been scheduled.
Kynev has been in pretrial detention since September 25. He denies the drug allegations.
The Slovo Zashchite project reported that Kynev was beaten so severely during his arrest that his leg was broken. Political scientist Ekaterina Schulmann said the beating was an attempt to force Kynev to confess to treason.
On October 26, reports emerged that Kynev had stopped eating in pretrial detention because his broken leg prevented him from using the toilet in his cell. Kynev himself said the injury left him unable to move around properly.
Alexander Kynev is one of the most respected experts on Russian regional politics and elections. Russian authorities designated him a “foreign agent” in February 2026.
More on Russian politics
- Russian elections expert Alexander Kynev stayed in the country to keep studying its politics. After criticizing the latest vote, he was arrested on drug charges.
- Russia’s FSB security service publishes dramatic videos of political arrests. A human rights group says roughly a quarter of the arrest scenes it examined were staged.
- What you need to know about Russia’s updated ‘foreign agent’ laws
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