Nikolay Merinov

Resident of Irkutsk. On 4 October 2021, his house was searched. When the law enforcers broke into his house, they hit him in the face with a heavy object so that the man fell down and lost consciousness. They continued beating him, breaking his teeth. His wife Lilia was dragged out of bed by her hair, handcuffed and beaten. Merinov tried to have a criminal case opened in connection with the beating, but was unsuccessful. He left Russia in July 2022. Merinov was initially tried in a criminal case on the activities of an extremist organisation as a witness, but later he was accused in absentia of organising the activities.