Andrey Pivovarov

According to OVD-Info

Andrei Pivovarov, formerly an activist of the People's Freedom Party (PARNAS), served as the campaign manager of the Democratic Coalition in the Kostroma region, which was formed based on Parnas. He later became the coordinator of the Open Russia movement.

A criminal case for unlawful access to computer information was initiated in connection with events in July 2015. After the Democratic Coalition's electoral list in the Novosibirsk region was threatened with removal from the election, Pivovarov arranged with Kostroma police captain Alexei Nikonorov to check the voter list. On the evening of July 27, when he arrived at the police department and entered an office, he was detained along with Nikonorov. Throughout the night Pivovarov was held at the Kostroma regional directorate of the Investigative Committee, and his lawyer was not allowed to see him. On July 29, the Sverdlovsk District Court of Kostroma sent Pivovarov and Nikonorov to a pre-trial detention centre for two months. Initially, Pivovarov was charged with illegal access to computer information. However, his associates and defence argued that he neither accessed nor used any data, and criminal liability for accessing computer information is only possible in cases of material consequences. Nikonorov was charged with abuse of power. Later, Pivovarov was charged with incitement to abuse of power, and the Investigative Committee announced that Pivovarov was also suspected of bribing Nikonorov.

During a confrontation Nikonorov admitted that he had given false testimony against Pivovarov under pressure from operatives.

On July 30, Pivovarov's mother, who is disabled and dependent on him, residing in St. Petersburg, was summoned to the Centre for Countering Extremism for a preventive conversation. On 31 July, her apartment was searched. According to Ilya Yashin, her lawyers were at the confrontation at the time. They were notified of the search via SMS, but their phones had been confiscated during the confrontation.

On September 28, after the legislative assembly elections in the Kostroma region, Pivovarov was released on bail. On June 10, 2016, he was sentenced to a fine of 2,4 million rubles, reduced to 1,5 million rubles for the time spent in a pre-trial detention centre. On August 4, the appellate court reduced the fine to one million rubles.

On May 31, 2021, Pivovarov was removed from a plane when he was about to fly from St. Petersburg to Warsaw. It turned out that a criminal case had been initiated against him on 29 May for engaging in activities of an "undesirable organisation." Pivovarov and his associates emphasised that Open Russia had officially ceased to exist on May 27. On June 2, he was taken into custody by a court order in Krasnodar, where the case had been initiated. On July 15, 2022, he was sentenced to four years in a general regime penal colony.

On August 1, 2024, he was released as part of a prisoner swap between Russia and other countries.