An 18-year-old Russian singer whose street performances of an anti-Putin song went viral has been arrested for unlawfully organising "a mass gathering", a court in Saint Petersburg said Thursday.
Diana Loginova, lead singer of pop band Stoptime, had been performing songs by groups known for their opposition to the war in Ukraine.
Videos published on social media have shown her performing the songs in front of dozens of people, some of whom sing along in a rare display of dissent.
Russia has escalated its decade-long crackdown on rights and freedom of speech at home since President Vladimir Putin ordered troops into Ukraine in February 2022.
On Thursday, Saint Petersburg's court service said Loginova had been detained for 13 days for "disrupting public order" after organising "a mass gathering of at least 70 people."
"During this event, negative consequences occurred, namely, pedestrian traffic was disrupted," it said on Telegram.
Russian media said Loginova was also subject to an ongoing investigation into alleged acts of "discrediting the army," a charge that carries a harsher sentence and is regularly used by Moscow to stifle dissenting voices.
Thousands of people have been tried on such charges, and hundreds have been sentenced to prison, often to lengthy terms.
{{/usCountry}}Thousands of people have been tried on such charges, and hundreds have been sentenced to prison, often to lengthy terms.
{{/usCountry}}Almost all Russian opposition figures are now in prison or in exile.