Since starting his career as a whistle-blower and organiser against Russia's prison violence, Vladimir Osechkin has come to face serious reprisals. Image: Vladimir Osechkin.Vladimir Osechkin had just emerged from four years in prison when I first met him at a Moscow dinner party five years ago. I immediately sensed that he (like so many other Russian freedom campaigners) was a man of quite superhuman bravery.
Vladimir was brought up in Samara, southern Russia. He was a very determined young man. By the time he was in his mid-20s he owned several large car showrooms in Moscow, as well as a paintball club and a quad bike company. He had an expensive flat in the centre of town: a model success story in Putin’s Russia.
Vladimir's life changed for good when two Porsche Cayenne were stolen from his showroom. He went to the police, who said they could sort out the problem, but demanded a bribe.
