A lonely radio nerd. A poet. Vladimir Putin’s crackdown sweeps up ordinary Russians

By DASHA LITVINOVA
Associated Press

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — A lonely man jailed for criticizing the government on his ham radio. A poet assaulted by police after he recited a poem objecting to Russia’s war in Ukraine. A low-profile woman committed to a psychiatric facility for condemning the invasion on social media. President Vladimir Putin’s 24 years in power are almost certain to be extended by six more years with the country’s presidential election this month. That leadership has transformed Russia. A country that once tolerated some dissent is now one that ruthlessly suppresses it. Opposition politicians, independent journalists and human rights activists were targeted before, but ordinary Russians are increasingly swept up in a crackdown that’s unprecedented in modern Russia.