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Pussy Riot Members Detained Again After Leaving Prison Following World Cup Pitch Invasion

Staff Writer

The band said the stunt was a political protest.

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Members of punk collective Pussy Riot say they've been detained again after leaving prison following their 15-day sentence for staging a pitch invasion during this month's World Cup final.

Veronika Nikulshina, Olga Pakhtusova, Olga Kurachova and Pyotr Verzilov served administrative arrest "in a special prison" and have been banned from attending sports events for three years following the pitch invasion.

In a series of tweets, the Russian group say the second arrest occurred directly as the members were leaving prison. 

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"All 4 members of pussy riot who participated in the world cup action and spent 15 days in jail are arrested AGAIN right after their release," one of the tweet reads. 

"Our 4 activists (nika nikulshina, olya pahtusova, olya kuracheva, petya verzilov) are arrested again and brought to the police station; they're charged with article "20.2.2" - "the organization and holding of public events without prior written notice’ - up to 10 days of arrest."

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Pussy Riot previously claimed the World Cup pitch invasion was a political statement, with Nikulshina saying, "It was a statement about the situation in the country which we disagree with.

"I wanted to show my disagreement with the actions of the law enforcement agencies."