A St. Petersburg court has fined and jailed participants in a protest against the demolition of the VNIIB building.

A St. Petersburg court has fined and jailed participants in a protest against the demolition of the VNIIB building.

A St. Petersburg court heard the cases of those detained following a protest against the demolition of the former VNIIIB building. Four protesters were fined 15,000 rubles, while the remaining 10 defenders were sentenced to jail terms ranging from one to six days.

Previously, a criminal case for hooliganism was opened against one of the defenders of the VNIIB building, Anton Glukhov, who was accused of spraying pepper spray in the face of a security guard.

Nikita Sorokin, the activists' defense attorney, believes the case is a frame-up and calls it retaliation for the active civic stance of the building's defenders. He emphasizes that the case materials contained numerous errors that the court ignored. Specifically, the protesters were accused of blocking access and moving fences, even though, according to the defense, the protesters were in a courtyard where there were no fences.

The demolition of the VNIIIB building began on the morning of January 8. During the protest, security forces detained at least 16 people.