POC checks Orlov's* custody conditions at SIZO

Oleg Orlov*, a human rights defender, sentenced to 2.5 years in jail for discrediting the Russian Army, has no complaints about his custody conditions at the SIZO (pre-trial prison, the Moscow Public Oversight Commission (POC) has stated.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on March 1, it became known that Orlov* was sent to quarantine at the Moscow "Kapotnya" SIZO. The custody conditions there can be treated as satisfactory, Oleg's wife and his advocate have confirmed.

Oleg Orlov* has no complaints about the custody conditions at the SIZO, Alexei Melnikov, the executive secretary of the Moscow POC, has stated.

The sentencing of Oleg Orlov*, a co-chairman of the "Memorial" Centre for Human Rights Defence**, for his statements contradicts the Russian Constitution and its international covenants, human rights defenders have pointed out. Orlov* himself treats his verdict as confirmation of Russia's return to totalitarianism.

*Included by the Russian Ministry of Justice (MoJ) into the register of foreign agents.

**As reported on the website of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), the reason for including on March 1, 2024, the unregistered "Memorial" Centre for Human Rights Defence (CHRD) into the roster of foreign agents was the spread of "inaccurate information aimed at creating a negative image of the Russian Federation, as well as the Russian Armed Forces."