MOSCOW — Russia’s most effective anti-corruption campaigner and opposition leader was found guilty Thursday of stealing about half a million dollars from a timber company, then sentenced to five years in prison in a verdict that sent shock waves throughout the country.
Alexei Navalny, 37, a leading critic of President Vladimir Putin with a penchant for exposes and cutting jibes, said before his trial began in April in the city of Kirov, about 550 miles northeast of Moscow, that he expected to be convicted on what he and his supporters contended were trumped-up charges.
Graphic
Russia's president cracks down on dissent.
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But as he was led into custody, it became clear that those in power in Russia have chosen not to be subtle as they crack down on the opposition.
His case is the most prominent of a series of criminal prosecutions that Russian authorities have launched against their critics.
Navalny had been hoping for a suspended sentence, in the belief that the Kremlin would want to avoid a backlash if it appeared too harsh.
Prosecutors asked for a six-year term for Navalny and a lesser term for a co-defendant, Pyotr Ofitserov.
Shortly after noon, Judge Sergei Blinov, 35, gave Navalny a five-year term and Ofitserov four years. He ordered both men to be taken into custody. Ofitserov’s wife cried. Navalny looked shaken. But he tweeted to his supporters, “OK. Don’t get bored here without me. And most important — don’t dawdle.”
Supporters planned unsanctioned rallies for later in the day in Moscow and St. Petersburg. Human rights advocates denounced the sentence. The head of the Civil Support Committee, Svetlana Gannushkina, told the Interfax news agency that it will “entail destructive consequences for the country.”
U.S. Ambassador Michael McFaul said on Twitter: “We are deeply disappointed in the conviction of Navalny and the apparent political motivations in this trial.”
A statement released by the office of the European Union’s foreign affairs chief, Catherine Ashton, said, “This outcome, given the procedural shortcomings, raises serious questions as to the state of the rule of law in Russia.”
Blinov, who commuted to the court in Kirov from a village 35 miles away, now has a record of no acquittals in 131 cases. At Navalny’s fiery closing statement two weeks ago, he kept his head down, as if finding the words uncomfortable.
“I declare that I and my colleagues will do everything to destroy this feudal order which exists in Russia, to destroy the system of power under which 83 percent of national goods belong to 0.5 percent of the population,” Navalny said then.
Thursday’s session was attended by a pack of supporters and television crews. Navalny, smiling and relaxed, and sending out an occasional tweet, had left Moscow by overnight train Wednesday evening. Among those present in the courtroom were his wife, his father and the long-time opposition politician Boris Nemtsov.
On Wednesday, Navalny was registered as a candidate in Moscow’s September mayoral election. Authorities in the capital have been eager to have him in the race, confident that he would lose to the incumbent, Acting Mayor Sergei Sobyanin. Navalny’s conviction will not necessarily bar him from running, as long as his appeals have not been exhausted.
Alexei Navalny, 37, a leading critic of President Vladimir Putin with a penchant for exposes and cutting jibes, said before his trial began in April in the city of Kirov, about 550 miles northeast of Moscow, that he expected to be convicted on what he and his supporters contended were trumped-up charges.
Graphic
Russia's president cracks down on dissent.
Latest stories from Foreign
William Wan The decline of U.S. influence is seen as inevitable, a survey on attitudes in 39 countries reports.
Will Englund and Kathy Lally He and his allies allege it’s a political prosecution based on trumped-up charges.
Anne Gearan Anger at the perceived inaction of the United States and the rest of the world runs high among refugees.
Michael Birnbaum As Europeans ask what their leaders knew about NSA surveillance, more think they're not getting the full story.
Syrian violence spills into Lebanon, Turkey; Yemen’s al-Qaeda branch confirms U.S. drone killed No. 2.
But as he was led into custody, it became clear that those in power in Russia have chosen not to be subtle as they crack down on the opposition.
His case is the most prominent of a series of criminal prosecutions that Russian authorities have launched against their critics.
Navalny had been hoping for a suspended sentence, in the belief that the Kremlin would want to avoid a backlash if it appeared too harsh.
Prosecutors asked for a six-year term for Navalny and a lesser term for a co-defendant, Pyotr Ofitserov.
Shortly after noon, Judge Sergei Blinov, 35, gave Navalny a five-year term and Ofitserov four years. He ordered both men to be taken into custody. Ofitserov’s wife cried. Navalny looked shaken. But he tweeted to his supporters, “OK. Don’t get bored here without me. And most important — don’t dawdle.”
Supporters planned unsanctioned rallies for later in the day in Moscow and St. Petersburg. Human rights advocates denounced the sentence. The head of the Civil Support Committee, Svetlana Gannushkina, told the Interfax news agency that it will “entail destructive consequences for the country.”
U.S. Ambassador Michael McFaul said on Twitter: “We are deeply disappointed in the conviction of Navalny and the apparent political motivations in this trial.”
A statement released by the office of the European Union’s foreign affairs chief, Catherine Ashton, said, “This outcome, given the procedural shortcomings, raises serious questions as to the state of the rule of law in Russia.”
Blinov, who commuted to the court in Kirov from a village 35 miles away, now has a record of no acquittals in 131 cases. At Navalny’s fiery closing statement two weeks ago, he kept his head down, as if finding the words uncomfortable.
“I declare that I and my colleagues will do everything to destroy this feudal order which exists in Russia, to destroy the system of power under which 83 percent of national goods belong to 0.5 percent of the population,” Navalny said then.
Thursday’s session was attended by a pack of supporters and television crews. Navalny, smiling and relaxed, and sending out an occasional tweet, had left Moscow by overnight train Wednesday evening. Among those present in the courtroom were his wife, his father and the long-time opposition politician Boris Nemtsov.
On Wednesday, Navalny was registered as a candidate in Moscow’s September mayoral election. Authorities in the capital have been eager to have him in the race, confident that he would lose to the incumbent, Acting Mayor Sergei Sobyanin. Navalny’s conviction will not necessarily bar him from running, as long as his appeals have not been exhausted.