Moscow — Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was convicted of contempt of court on Tuesday and sentenced to nine years in Supreme Prison. As long as possible.
The judge also ruled that Navalny had to pay a fine of 1.2 million rubles (about $ 11,500). Navalny can appeal the decision.
Navalny, who has been in exile in eastern Moscow for two and a half years, has been accused of embezzling the money he and his foundation have raised over the years and insulting judges in previous trials.
Politicians rejected the claim as a political motive. Prosecutors have sought a 13-year sentence in the largest prison for an anti-corruption crusade and a fine of 1.2 million rubles.
It was not immediately clear whether Navalny would provide this statement at the same time as his current statement, or on top of it, and when he would be transferred to which of the largest security facilities.
Navalny’s Twitter account responded to this ruling with a quote from the television series The Wire. Now, as a character in my favorite TV series, Wire said:’You only have two days. It’s the day you enter and the day you leave. I also had a T-shirt with this slogan, but prison authorities confiscated it in consideration of printing extremists. “
The trial, which began about a month ago, took place in a parole court in a prison colony hours away from Moscow, where Navalny was sentenced to violate parole. Navalny’s supporters criticized the authorities’ decision to move the minutes from the Moscow courts and said they had effectively restricted access to the media and supporters’ minutes.
Navalny, 45, appeared in a prison uniform hearing, gave several elaborate speeches during the trial, and accused him of accusations as fake.
Navalny was arrested in January 2021 shortly after returning from Germany and recovered from the addiction accusing the Kremlin for five months, Russian officials vehemently denied. Immediately after his arrest, the court sentenced Navalny to two and a half years’ imprisonment for a parole breach resulting from a suspended sentence in 2014 in a fraudulent case allegedly promoted politically.
Following Navalny’s imprisonment, authorities released a thorough crackdown on his peers and supporters. His closest ally left Russia after facing multiple criminal charges. His anti-corruption foundation and a network of nearly 40 local offices have been outlawed as radicals.
Last month, Russian authorities added a number of Navalny and his associates to the state registry of militants and terrorists.
Several criminal cases have been launched individually against Navalny, and his companions suggest that the Kremlin intends to keep him behind the bar as long as possible.
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