Doctors: 'Pussy Riot' protestor who invaded World Cup pitch a victim of poisoning

July’s World Cup final was briefly interrupted when protestors from Russian punk rock and activist group Pussy Riot invaded the pitch during the match between France and Croatia.

Now German doctors have confirmed that it is “highly plausible” that one of those protestors has been poisoned.

Pyotr Verzilov believed poisoned by Russian agents

Pyotr Verzilov, 30, was hospitalized in Moscow last Tuesday after visiting a Russian courtroom to await the release of girlfriend and fellow Pussy Riot activist Veronika Nikulshina, who had also stormed the World Cup pitch.

Each had served a 15-day jail sentence for the World Cup incident. Nikulshina was being released on a separate incident after being detained during a traffic stop.

Verzilov showed symptoms of poisoning including loss of sight, hearing and the ability to walk upon returning home shortly after leaving the courtroom, Nikulshina told reporters.

Verzilov transported to Berlin over safety concerns

He was treated at toxicology wards in two Moscow hospitals before leaving Saturday on a medical transport plan to Berlin due to fears of remaining in Russia, where Pussy Riot members fear the state poisoned him. The Berlin-based Cinema for Peace human rights group paid for his transport.

“I think he will be more safe here,” Verzilov’s mother Elena Verzolova told The New York Times.

Berlin doctors believe Verzilov was poisoined

Doctors in Berlin told reporters Tuesday that they had not determined the specific cause of Verzilov’s condition, but were convinced that he was poisoned.

“We are working on the assumption of a poisoning that has lasted about a week,” hospital director Dr. Kai-Uwe Eckardt said. “Test results indicate certain active ingredients, but the exact substance has not yet been determined.”

Nikulshina told reporters Saturday that Verzilov’s condition had improved.

“He’s better. Everything is okay,” Nikulshina told Reuters on Sunday. “The doctors here are great.”

Poison tactic a remnant of Soviet Cold War era

The incident occurred months after the alleged March poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei V. Skripal in Britain. British officials have accused Moscow of attempting to assassinate Skripal with a nerve agent that affected his daughter and three others. Skripal and his daughter survived, while one of the other alleged victims did not.

The technique is a throwback to Cold War-era Soviet tactics to silence critics. Pussy Riot has made a name for itself with highly visible protests critical of oppressive Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Putin was a high-ranking member of the Soviet intelligence agency KGB from 1975 until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1989. His authoritarian rule has been a frequent target of Pussy Riot’s demonstrations.

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