Donald Trump on Tuesday compared his own legal troubles with the persecution of Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny, who died in prison last week.

The former US president and current frontrunner for the 2024 nomination again refused to criticize Russian leader Vladimir Putin over Navalny’s unexplained death, despite being offered the chance during a town hall meeting in South Carolina.

Navalny died suddenly at age 47 in an Arctic prison, shocking Russia’s exiled opposition as well as the West, where leaders, including US President Joe Biden, have blamed the Kremlin.

Trump railed against the $355 million fine meted out to him in a New York fraud trial, saying “it’s a form of Navalny.”

“It is a form of communism or fascism,” he added.

Despite prodding from host Laura Ingraham, Trump did not mention Putin when asked about Navalny, though he lamented “a very sad situation.”