Police in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk have broken into the apartment of a former associate of jailed opposition activist Aleksei Navalny and searched the home, the former Navalny associate told RFE/RL.
Natalya Peterimova, who fled Russia fearing for her safety, told RFE/RL that police broke in her apartment on May 18.
According to Peterimova, police ordered her mother to arrive at her apartment in Krasnoyarsk and unlock its door, which Peterimova's mother refused to do.
Peterimova says police then broke the door and windows and searched the premises.
"They refused to give any explanations to my mom and when I talked to them by phone, they also refused to give explanations. A number of procedural regulations were violated," said Peterimova, who worked in Navalny's regional office in Krasnoyarsk before fleeing the country.
She added that it is very likely that a criminal case on extremism charges similar to cases launched against other former associates of Navalny has been launched against her.
Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation and his political movement were declared extremist organizations by the Russian authorities in June 2021 and disbanded.
Several of the Kremlin critic's associates subsequently were charged with establishing an extremist group. Many of them have fled the country amid pressure from the Russian authorities.
