<
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jan/17/russia-gives-navalny-lawyers-multi-year-sentences-for-relaying-his-messages>
"Russia has sentenced three lawyers who had defended Alexei Navalny to several
years in prison for bringing messages from the late opposition leader from
prison to the outside world.
The case, which comes amid a widespread crackdown on dissent during the Ukraine
offensive, has alarmed rights groups that fear Moscow will ramp up trials
against legal representatives in addition to jailing their clients.
The Kremlin has sought to punish Navalny’s associates even after his
unexplained death in an Arctic prison colony last February.
Vadim Kobzev, Alexei Liptser and Igor Sergunin were found guilty of
participating in an “extremist organisation” by a court in the town of
Petushki.
Kobzev, the most high-profile member of Navalny’s legal team, was sentenced to
five and a half years, while Liptser was handed five years and Sergunin three
and a half years.
The sentences drew outrage in the west.
The trio were almost the only people visiting Navalny in prison while he served
his 19-year sentence.
Navalny, Putin’s main political opponent, communicated with the world by
transmitting messages through his lawyers, which his team then published on
social media.
Passing letters and messages through lawyers is a normal practice in Russian
prisons.
Navalny’s exiled widow, Yulia Navalnaya, said the lawyers were “political
prisoners and should be freed immediately”."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
