Russian court fines Boris Nadezhdin after medical episode in court

A Russian court fined anti-war politician Boris Nadezhdin 1,000 rubles, about $13, for displaying "extremist symbols" after a hearing in which paramedics carried out a cardiogram on him in court because of very high blood pressure.

Nadezhdin, 63, is one of the few Russian politicians who openly criticise President Vladimir Putin and Moscow's offensive in Ukraine. He had tried to register to run in parliamentary elections in September.

The charge concerned a 2023 post in which Nadezhdin linked to a video featuring late opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who is designated an "extremist" in Russia. Navalny died in prison in 2024.

Nadezhdin rejected the case as "nonsense" and said it was intended to stop him from taking part in the September vote. Before the hearing, he took a blood pressure reading that appeared to show extreme hypertensive levels, according to a reporter in the courtroom. Paramedics entered the room and performed a cardiogram at about 12:00 pm local time, roughly an hour after his lawyers called for an ambulance.

Despite requests from his lawyers, the judge did not delay the verdict. The court found Nadezhdin guilty and imposed the fine. The maximum penalty for the offence is 15 days in prison.

After the verdict, Nadezhdin said he was glad to be alive and described Russia as a sick state. He had earlier warned that he would die if sent to prison.

His lawyer, Natalia Tikhonova, called the charge unlawful. She said Nadezhdin had posted a link to a livestream that had not yet happened and did not know it would include an image of Navalny. She also accused the court of endangering his life by not allowing paramedics to see him immediately.

Nadezhdin had been campaigning to become an MP in Dolgoprudny, outside Moscow, before his arrest Monday. He said authorities filed the case because they were nervous about his popularity.

He also tried to run against Putin in the 2024 presidential election, gathering tens of thousands of support signatures before being barred from the vote. Russia has carried out a broad crackdown on dissent since launching its 2022 offensive in Ukraine.