A Russian man arrested for allegedly running a travel agency for gay clients was found dead in custody in Moscow, human rights group OVD-Info reported Sunday, amid a crackdown on LGBTQ+ rights in Russia.

According to OVD-Informationwhich monitors political arrests, Andrej Kotov — director of the “Men Travel” agency — faced charges of “organizing and participating in extremist activity.”

OVD-Info said the investigator told Kotov’s lawyer that her client died of suicide early Sunday while in pretrial detention and was found dead in his cell.

Before Kotov’s death, independent media outlet Mediazon reported earlier this month that Kotov denied the charges and said in court that officers beat him and gave him electric shocks during his arrest, even though he did not resist.

Just over a year ago, Russia’s Supreme Court effectively banned all LGBTQ+ activism with a ruling that labeled the “international LGBT movement” as extremist. According to Human Rights Watch, the court accused the “LGBT movement” of inciting social and religious discord. The move exposed anyone in or associated with the community to prosecution and imprisonment, creating an atmosphere of fear and intimidation.

The LGBTQ+ community in Russia has been under legal and public pressure for more than a decade, but especially since the Kremlin sent troops to Ukraine in 2022. Russian leader Vladimir Putin has argued that the war is a proxy battle with the West, which he says aims to destroy Russia and her “traditional family values” pushing LGBTQ+ rights.

last month, Putin signed the law a bill banning the adoption of Russian children by citizens of countries where gender reassignment is legal.

In 2022 a law was passed The lower house of the Russian legislature bans so-called “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations” for adults and minors.