Current:Home > Contact-usAn associate of Russian opposition leader Navalny is sentenced to 9 years in prison-InfoLens
An associate of Russian opposition leader Navalny is sentenced to 9 years in prison
View Date:2024-12-23 14:16:57
MOSCOW (AP) — An associate of imprisoned Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was sentenced to nine years in prison on Friday, the latest move in a relentless Kremlin crackdown on dissent.
Ksenia Fadeyeva, a regional legislator who headed a local branch of Navalny’s organization in the Siberian city of Tomsk, was convicted on charges of organizing an extremist group. Her lawyers said they would appeal the verdict, arguing that Fadeyeva had ended her involvement with Navalny’s organization before the authorities labeled it extremist in 2021.
Navalny’s spokeswoman, Kira Yarmysh, hailed Fadeyeva as “honest and brave,” saying on X that those who fabricated the criminal case against her will eventually face punishment.
Navalny, the most prominent foe of Russian President Vladimir Putin, is serving a 19-year sentence on charges of extremism. Earlier this month, he went missing for several weeks until his lawyers announced Monday that he has been moved from a prison in central Russia to a remote Arctic prison colony known for its harsh conditions.
Navalny has been behind bars in Russia since January 2021, when he returned to Moscow after recuperating in Germany from nerve agent poisoning that he blamed on the Kremlin. Before his arrest, he campaigned against official corruption and organized major anti-Kremlin protests.
A Moscow court outlawed Navalny’s Foundation for Fighting Corruption and about 40 regional offices as extremist in June 2021, shutting down his political network and forcing many of his close associates and team members to leave Russia. Those who stayed have faced prosecution.
Fadeyeva’s case is the latest in a string of convictions of regional activists linked to Navalny’s work.
Lilia Chanysheva, who headed Navalny’s headquarters in the central Russian city of Ufa, was sentenced to 7½ years in prison on similar charges in June, and Vadim Ostanin, who previously headed Navalny’s office in the southern Siberian city of Barnaul, was handed a 9-year sentence in July on charges of organizing an extremist community.
And in October, authorities detained three lawyers representing Navalny in what his associates described as part of Kremlin efforts to completely isolate him.
Navalny associate Leonid Volkov has said that he prodded Fadeyeva to leave Russia amid the crackdown, but she refused, citing her obligations to voters. She has been in custody since her arrest in November.
veryGood! (1)
Related
- In an AP interview, the next Los Angeles DA says he’ll go after low-level nonviolent crimes
- Ye accused of drugging, sexually assaulting ex-assistant at Diddy session
- WNBA Finals winners, losers: Series living up to hype, needs consistent officiating
- Prison operator under federal scrutiny spent millions settling Tennessee mistreatment claims
- Sister Wives’ Meri Brown Shares Hysterical Farmers Only Dating Profile Video After Kody Split
- Bath & Body Works apologizes for candle packaging that sparked controversy
- Sean 'Diddy' Combs accuser says 'clout chasing' is why her lawyers withdrew from case
- Tour guide identified as victim who died in Colorado gold mine elevator malfunction
- Mississippi man charged with shooting 5 people after not being allowed into party
- Operator dies and more than a dozen passengers hurt as New Jersey commuter train hits tree
Ranking
- Whoopi Goldberg Shares Very Relatable Reason She's Remained on The View
- Pilot killed and passenger injured as small plane crashes in Georgia neighborhood
- Gunmen kill 21 miners in southwest Pakistan ahead of an Asian security summit
- Sister Wives' Kody Brown Claims Ex Meri Brown Was Never Loyal to Me Ever in Marriage
- 'I was in total shock': Woman wins $1 million after forgetting lotto ticket in her purse
- Horoscopes Today, October 13, 2024
- Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie to miss USMNT's game against Mexico as precaution
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's crossword, Definitely Not Up to Something
Recommendation
-
Vikings' Camryn Bynum celebrates game-winning interception with Raygun dance
-
Prison operator under federal scrutiny spent millions settling Tennessee mistreatment claims
-
SpaceX launches its mega Starship rocket. This time, mechanical arms will try to catch it at landing
-
Week 6 fantasy football rankings: PPR, half-PPR and standard leagues
-
Maine elections chief who drew Trump’s ire narrates House tabulations in livestream
-
Members of the Kennedy family gather for funeral of Ethel Kennedy
-
How The Unkind Raven bookstore gave new life to a Tennessee house built in 1845
-
When is 'Tracker' back? Season 2 release date, cast, where to watch