In a court on the outskirts of
Moscow, fellow students of Yegor Zhukov started weeping as he delivered a speech via a video link from jail.
The 21-year-old is among a group of young
protesters with bright futures risking criminal convictions and life-changing jail terms as
Russia attempts to quell dissent.
Zhukov is the most prominent among them thanks to his popular
YouTube clips where he criticises President Vladimir Putin's regime and backs the anti-corruption campaign of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.