VIDEO: Russian Police Accused Of Excessive Force For Punching Female Protester In Custody

A video has gone viral Monday that shows Moscow officers punching a female anti-government protester being taken into custody.

The video has increased awareness of tensions in Moscow, which have had weeks of political demonstrations aimed at demanding more open and free elections within the city’s legislature. During the latest round of protests over the weekend, riot police detained over 200 protesters who participated in what was considered an “illegal” protest.

During the course of the arrests, the video emerged of two riot officers punching a female protester in the stomach who was resisting arrest as they physically escorted her to a nearby police bus.

The woman in the video was later identified as 26-year-old statistician Daria Sosnovskaya. She had also been present for the sanctioned protests that took place Saturday.

The approved protest saw 60,000 people gathered to demand free elections in the city and the largest event of its kind in nearly a decade in Russia. The protests have been emboldened by an anti-Kremlin movement that has been gaining momentum to challenge President Vladimir Putin and his grip on the Russian government.

Sosnovskaya’s arrest has resulted in added outcry, this time aimed at the police, for the use of excessive force in breaking up the recent protests. Several celebrities within Russia, such as singer Egor Krid, shared the clip on their social media accounts.

“What kind of a scumbag do you need to be to hit a member of the fairer sex,” Krid wrote on his Instagram post. “I don’t care what she did. This kind of thing just shouldn’t happen.”

Russian police, however, have denied accusations of excessive force, though they have yet to comment directly to any major media outlets. The spread of this video has also led to questions from the U.S. and EU about police practices in Russia.