Alexey Gorinov in court. Photo: Ilya Yashin’s Telegram channel

The trial of former Moscow local councillor Alexey Gorinov for “justifying terrorism” has begun at a military court in the Vladimir region, near Moscow, independent media outlet Mediazona reported on Wednesday.

According to the indictment, Gorinov attempted to justify an attack on the Crimean Bridge, which connects the annexed Ukrainian peninsula to Russia, as well as the actions of Ukraine’s Azov Battalion, deemed a “terrorist organisation” in Russia, in conversation with fellow inmates last year.

A TV had been brought into the ward where Gorinov was being treated for pneumonia at the time, when other men on the ward, one of whom had a recording device, asked him his views on Russian politics and the war in Ukraine, according to Mediazona.

Gorinov’s lawyer Alyona Savelyeva asked for the case to be sent back to the prosecutor on the grounds of gross procedural violations, saying the indictment didn’t contain the date of the alleged crime nor the exact wording of what Gorinov allegedly said.

Savelyeva also noted that prosecutors had failed to identify the four witnesses to whom Gorinov spoke, despite that being a prerequisite for a justification of terrorism charge. She also argued that the case was based on information that was obtained “as a provocation”, which is prohibited by Russian law.

Gorinov, who held up a sign in court on Tuesday saying “Enough killing. Let’s stop the war”, was sentenced to seven years in prison for spreading “false information” about the Russian military in July 2022 after he made an anti-war speech at a local council meeting.

In August, investigative journalist Christo Grozev told the BBC that Gorinov was originally supposed to be part of the unprecedented East-West prisoner exchange that took place earlier that month. According to his lawyers, Gorinov’s already poor health has worsened significantly in prison.