Two men have been detained in Poland on suspicion of attacking Russian activist Leonid Volkov, an ally of the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny. The attack occurred on March 12 outside Volkov’s home in Vilnius, Lithuania. The suspects, who are Polish citizens known to police, allegedly traveled to Vilnius before the attack and returned to Warsaw afterward. Officials in both Lithuania and Poland announced the arrests, with Lithuania thanking Poland for its cooperation in the matter. The suspects are expected to be handed over to Lithuania in May, where they face up to three years in prison if convicted on charges of causing bodily harm.
The two men were arrested on suspicion of carrying out an assault on Volkov at the behest of foreign intelligence services. They were put under arrest until May 13 in Poland on the condition that they would serve any potential punishment in Poland. The suspects are accused of causing damage to Volkov’s health while being active in an organized group and carrying out orders from an alien country’s special services. The court in Warsaw’s Praga district decided to hand them over to Lithuania for further investigation, while their lawyers have lodged complaints that will be sent to the Appeals Court in Warsaw for review.
The arrests in Poland came after a month of work by Lithuanian police on the case. Volkov, who suffered a broken arm in the attack, had accused Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “henchmen” of responsibility for the incident. The attack took place shortly after Navalny’s unexplained death in a remote Arctic penal colony, which sparked widespread condemnation and accusations against the Kremlin. Navalny, a prominent opposition figure and fierce critic of Putin, had been imprisoned since January 2021 on politically motivated charges of extremism. His funeral in Moscow on March 1 drew thousands of supporters, with his widow Yulia vowing to continue his work.
Volkov, formerly in charge of Navalny’s regional offices and election campaigns, had left Russia several years ago under pressure from the authorities. He ran for mayor of Moscow in 2013 and aimed to challenge Putin in the 2018 presidential election. The attack on him in Vilnius further highlighted the dangers faced by opposition figures in Russia and those associated with them. The incident also underscored the ongoing crackdown on dissent in the country and the challenges faced by those daring to speak out against the government. The arrests in Poland and the ongoing investigations serve as a reminder of the risks involved in opposition work in authoritarian regimes.
