Moscow City Court sets date for appeal in ecologist's case

The complaint against the arrest of the head of the Volgograd region's environment committee, Alexei Sivokoz, was transferred to an appeals court within 24 hours.

Feb 27, 2026

A Moscow court has scheduled the appeal for early February 2026 in the case of the regional environmental official.
Source:
VGTRK (All-Russia State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company) / YouTube.com

The Moscow City Court scheduled a hearing for the appeal lodged by Alexei Sivokoz«s lawyers for 4 February 2026 at 9:30 a.m. The case was referred from the Meshchansky District Court to the appellate instance in just one day.

Alexei Sivokoz was remanded in custody on 18 December 2025 by a ruling of the Meshchansky District Court, which granted an investigator«s petition that same day. His defense team appealed the ruling on 22 December, but the case was only submitted for appellate review on 28 January 2026. The Moscow City Court set the hearing date on 29 January.

Anonymous Telegram channels suggest a link between the criminal prosecution of Sivokoz and his former deputies, Irina Panina and Daria Kazankova, and the implementation of the national project «Rehabilitation of the Volga». This project had previously been harshly criticized by a State Duma deputy, who directed the criticism at the regional leadership. Irina Panina was arrested shortly before Sivokoz, and Daria Kazankova was arrested on the same day. The appellate complaint against Kazankova«s pretrial detention has already been considered and rejected by the court.