Biography
Konstantin Kotov is a Russian programmer, a civil activist, a supporter of Alexei Navalny. Departing a conclusion in the colony in Moscow business, which changed not only the biography, but also the personal life of a man, he became one of the heroes of the liberal opposition.Childhood and youth
Konstantin Aleksandrovich Kotov was born in Moscow on February 22, 1985. He graduated from a red diploma Faculty of Cybernetics of the Russian Technological University in 2008 in the specialty "Applied Mathematics". From July 2014 he worked as a programmer, developer of video surveillance systems in the company DSSL. According to colleagues, he was an excellent professional.
Social activity
In November 2018, the cats helped the Ukrainian military, captured by the Russian Federation in the Kerch Strait, in particular, carried them to transfer to Lefortovo SIZO. According to the rules, this was allowed to do only twice a week, but the man wrote a complaint, and he was allowed to visit prisoners four times a week. He passed the sailors food, dishes, clothes and medicines.
Konstantin participated in the pickets and processions in support of Oleg Santzov and other prisoners, helped the defendants of the "New Majesty" business and a graduate student of MSU Azat Miftakhov, accused of attacking the United Russia office.
In August 2019, the cats were convicted of an unauthorized rally. Together with him detained the employee of Sberbank-Technologies Aidar Gubaidullina.
On September 5, 2019, the judge of the Tver District Court of the city of Moscow Stanislav Minin sentenced Konstantin Kotov by 4 years of the colony of the general regime. The trial lasted only 2 days, which was an unprecedented case for such cases. The solution also seemed to the liberal press overly tough. During his announcement in the hall there were human rights activist Lion Ponomarev, an employee of FBK Love Sobol and Municipal deputy Ilya Azar. When the judge finished reading, an independent journalist Victoria Ivlev, accusing his mining in a lie, ran out of the hall. A woman was performed by applause. The convict himself said that such actions the ruling regime "makes himself a grave".
The Carnegie Moscow Center expressed the opinion that such transfer of administrative offenses in the criminal law will forever change the judicial system of Russia. Iveva posted a photo of Constantine on his page in "Instagram" and in the comment to the post wrote that now there are very few people of such moral purity, honor and decency.
On April 20, 2020, the Moscow City Court softened the Cottance for up to 1 year and 6 months of the colony of the general regime after he appealed against the sentence in the Constitutional Court. The highest authority recalled that imprisonment is prescribed if an unauthorized rally represented a threat to the life and health of citizens, for example, a firearm or "Molotov cocktails" was used. The suspension of transport movement is the cost of any public action and cannot be considered as a criminal offense.
December 16, 2020, departing a sentence in the 2nd correctional colony in the city of Pokrov, Vladimir Region, Konstantin was released. They released the enclosed in the early morning, by the assumption of Kotov to avoid the attention of the press and the crowd. At the exit, Anna Pavlikova, friends, lawyers and previously convicted in the Moscow Court were waiting for him, Alexey Motilo and Vladislav Barabanov.
In June, the programmer served 10 days in a penalty insulator for not greeted with a colony officer, received 6 recovery and a negative characteristic. By liberation, he stated that he did not meet in the colony of supporters of the current government, all prisoners supported the opposition. In the first months, the bosses forbade other convicts to communicate with Kotovo to have psychological pressure on him. But he received many paper and email letters with the words of support from Russia and European countries.
According to Constantine, the term did not seem to him long, it was easily used to the regime, one day was similar to another. The first reprimand was a man for the fact that another prisoner gave Kotov gloves, and another one for an unbuttoned button. Unlike Moscow isolators, in the colony, each step was regulated and it was impossible to stay alone with himself. The administration could order a whole day to watch TV and do not deal with anything else.
Personal life
In October 2019, Konstantin and convict in the case of the "New Magitia" Anna Pavlikov got married in the "Matrosskaya Silence" insulator. The parents of Kotov and the family of the newly minted spouse became friends, together came on dates and bought products for gears.Konstantin was sent under the stage, and Pavlikova fell under house arrest. Accordingly, she could not visit her husband until September 2020, when the preventive measure was removed. The spouses communicated through the glass, did not allow dates in the colony more often than once every two months.
According to colleagues, friends and acquaintances, the young man has a developed sense of empathy, never passes by someone else's trouble. Even during the conclusion in the colony, Konstantin took care of other arrestants.
Konstantin cats now
On January 17, 2021, the activist was detained at Vnukovo airport, where he met Alexei Navalny, for non-fulfillment of the requirements of the police officer. According to Konstantin himself, he just twisted his hands, tried to take away the phone and took the phone into the car. The police did not explain their actions. Other supporters of the blogger were detained: Ruslan Shavedovinov, Love Sobol, Anastasia Cadetova and Ilya Pakhomov.
On January 27, 2021, the lawyer Kotova Alla Frolova reported that the opposition was disappeared. According to a woman, he left the house in Moscow to pick up an order from the store. It never appeared in the store and did not come out. Judging by the geolocation of the phone, Frolova said later, Konstantin was in the linear department of Vnukovo airport, where the protocol was made on it due to the detention during the arrival of Navalny. The next day, the civil activist was awarded 5 days of administrative arrest.
In addition to Constantine, the police also took Oleg Navalny after the search in his apartment. The same procedure was conducted in the House of Pussy Riot Maria Alekhina. A little later, her mother reported that the girl disappeared and did not get into touch.