A Russian court today found imprisoned opposition leader Alexei Navalny guilty of fraud, meaning he could face another 13 years in prison, AFP reported.
“Navalny committed fraud, that is, theft of someone else’s property from an organized group,” Judge Margarita Kotova was quoted by an AFP correspondent in the courtroom as saying. Kotova read out the verdict handed down at a court hearing in a strict regime colony, where the opposition leader has been held for about a year.
Navalny is also accused of insulting a judge in a case of protecting honor and dignity against a veteran of the Great Patriotic War, TASS recalls. The court has not yet ruled on Navalny’s guilt in the case. His sentence will be determined in the final part of the verdict, after the court summarizes the evidence in the case.
In addition, according to investigators in Russia, Navalny misused almost 2.7 million rubles – donations to his Anti-Corruption Foundation.