Navalny Found Guilty on New Fraud Charges

Kremlin and Putin critic Alexei Navalny has been found guilty by a Moscow court on new charges of fraud after fresh embezzlement charges were brought by the state.

The imprisoned opposition politician’s friends and allies fear that his life many once again be in danger, with his near deadly-poisoning fresh in everyone’s minds.

A makeshift court inside the maximum-security prison in Pokrov 100 kilometres east of Moscow, Judge Margarita Kotova found Navalny guiltyon Tuesday March 22^nd. He is currently in prison serving a sentence for violating his parole after being flown to Germany for medical treatment after he was poisoned.

State prosecutors had requested an additional 13 years be added to his existing sentence, with investigators accusing the 45-year-old of embezzling more than $4.7 million (4.27 million euros) in donations that were given to his political organisations that were retroactively declared “extremist”. That sum was lowered to $25,800 (23,460 euros) according to the Moscow Times during the course of the trial.

Navalny’s spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh expressed fears that “Alexei will be face to face with those who have already tried to kill him. And nothing will stop them from trying again.”

Yarmysh, who fled Russia last year after being convicted for calling for protests against Navalny’s arrest.

2/20 You all know that there are no independent courts in Russia, but when they say “court”, you still probably imagine a solemn hall, a tribune and a judge with a gavel. Well, there is none of this in Alexei’s case. All 13 hearings took place right in his penal colony. pic.twitter.com/XpMEYaKntG

— Кира Ярмыш (@Kira_Yarmysh) March 21, 2022

She said: “We are now talking not only about Alexei’s freedom, but also about his life.”

With the war in Ukraine ongoing, the Russian government are working hard to silence those who oppose them, as new fraud charges are brought against Navalny.

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