MOSCOW, April 16 (RAPSI) – Moscow’s Lyublinsky District Court has postponed hearing of arguments in a case against activists of the New Greatness (“Novoe Velichie”) extremist movement until May 7, according to a statement of the court’s press service.

Starting March 18, courts have heard only urgent cases and hold hearings without the parties’ precense due to the coronavirus epidemic. This order is set minimum until April 30.

Moreover, one of the defense lawyers involved in the movement case is currently in France and cannot depart for Russia because of the closed borders, the statement reads.

Four defendants, Ruslan Kostylenkov, Vyacheslav Kryukov, Dmitry Poletayev and Petr Karamzin are in detention. Three other alleged members of the movement, Maria Dubovik, Anna Pavlikova and Maxim Roshchin are under house arrest.

One more accused person, who had been placed under house arrest, Sergey Gavrilov managed to escape and was put on a wanted list. His case was returned to the prosecution.

Alleged activists of the extremist movement were arrested in March 2018. Investigators stated that the defendants followed far-right ideas and that their leader claimed that he planned to establish a new order in Russia.

The New Greatness case became a subject of public controversy because the defense has information that the movement itself was organized by a law enforcement officer.