Campaigners organise flight, saying Pyotr Verzilov had to be treated quickly outside Russia

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

The Pussy Riot activist Pyotr Verzilov has been flown to Berlin to receive specialist medical treatment after a suspected poisoning in Moscow.

Verzilov, one of the four members of Pussy Riot who invaded the pitch dressed in police uniforms during the World Cup final in Moscow to protest against excessive Russian police powers, fell ill following a court hearing on Tuesday and was taken to hospital in a serious condition. His first symptoms included loss of vision and being unable to walk.

It is not yet clear what is causing Verzilov’s illness, but other members of the protest group say they believe it to be poisoning.

He arrived at Schönefeld airport on Saturday night on a flight organised by the Cinema for Peace Foundation, which has close connections with Pussy Riot and is based in the German capital.

The foundation’s founder, Jaka Bizilj, told the German newspaper Bild it was important for the family that Verzilov was treated as quickly as possible outside Russia.

“We hope now that he will be helped quickly in Berlin and that we can then establish whether and how he was poisoned in Russia,” he said.

Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Verzilov’s ex-wife and a fellow Pussy Riot member, posted a video on Twitter filmed through the door of the plane showing him being aided by a woman.

He was reportedly accompanied by his mother, Jelena. He was later wheeled off on a stretcher and taken by ambulance to hospital.

Tolokonnikova told Bild what happened was “deliberate” and intended to “intimidate or even attempt to murder” her ex-husband.

Verzilov, who has dual Russian and Canadian citizenship, is a prominent member of the anti-Kremlin scene and has been involved in protest art in Russia for more than a decade.

Bizilj said the Cinema for Peace Foundation had urgently despatched an air ambulance to bring him to Berlin to run tests.

Writing on Facebook, Verzilov’s girlfriend and fellow Pussy Riot member Veronika Nikulshina expressed relief that he had been transferred out of Russia.

“Three times hurrah to everyone who wrote, phoned, visited, cried and sang. We’re in Berlin. All is well,” she said.