After condemning Latvia’s support for Kyiv, activist moves to Russia and is sent to fight in Ukraine, relatives say

Sergey Mulivanov, a 59-year-old Latvian Russian Union activist who moved to Russia, has reportedly been sent to fight in Ukraine after being charged with fraud. His lawyer, relatives and acquaintances say he was tricked into signing a military contract while in pre-trial detention and was taken to Rostov-on-Don despite withdrawing from it.

The case matters because Mulivanov had supported Russia’s invasion and condemned Latvia’s backing of Kyiv before leaving the country. His relatives say he unwittingly carried stolen money for scammers and denies wrongdoing; they also report that he has diabetes and polyneuropathy, and that they have been unable to contact him for six days. His lawyer says he received no military medical examination before signing, while requests for a health assessment in detention went unanswered.