Russia dissident and Navalny ally Leonid Volkov sentenced in absentia to 18 years imprisonment – JURIST

The Moscow Military Court on Wednesday sentenced in absentia Leonid Volkov, an ally of Alexey Navalny and a former leader of the Anti-Corruption Foundation, to 18 years of imprisonment and a fine of 2 million rubles (approximately $25,000). The charges against him included 18 charges of spreading military “fakes,” 16 charges of justifying terrorism on the internet, 4 charges of financial scams, and 2 charges of vandalism with political motivation.

In addition to the charges, Volkov was also accused of rehabilitation of Nazism on the internet, involvement of minors in protests, creation of a non-profit organization that encroaches on civil and individual rights of citizens, and organization and financing of an “extremist group.” Volkov has been on a wanted list since January of 2021.

Volkov, who left Russia in 2019 and currently resides in Lithuania, shared his sentence with his followers on Telegram and stated that the court also banned him from using the internet for 28 years. After his sentencing, Volkov called for his followers to support political prisoners in Russia. He also shared that the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled in his favor for his arrest in 2018 and established a compensation of €6000. In 2018 and 2019, Volkov was illegally jailed by the Russian government twice for “inspiring” people to join an unsanctioned protest by livestreaming a video calling for pension reforms in Russia. The imprisonment was condemned by Amnesty International.

Earlier this year, Volkov’s 70-year-old father Mikhail Volkov, who until recently headed the Department of Algebra and Fundamental Informatics at Ural Federal University, was arrested after his home in Russia was raided. Volkov shared that a criminal case has been created against his father for financing an “extremist organization.” The Canadian Mathematical Society and European Mathematical Society released statements expressing concern about Mikhail’s dismissal from his position, arrest, and detention, sharing that Mikhail is in poor health and requires hospitalization.

Alexey Navalny was an activist and a political opposition leader who unexpectedly died in Russian prison last year, just days before he was set to be released in a prisoner exchange. The Russian government arrested hundreds of people who mourned the opposition leader and detained, jailed, and sentenced activists, lawyers, photographers, and other professionals involved with Navalny over the years. There is an ongoing arrest warrant for Navalny’s widow Yulia Navalnaya.