A colleague of the imprisoned Kremlin critic Navalny has to go to prison for nine years. Xenia Fadeyeva is accused of founding an “extremist organization.” Her lawyer wants to appeal the verdict.
In Russia, a colleague of the imprisoned opposition politician Alexei Navalny has been sentenced to nine years in prison on charges of “founding an extremist organization,” according to her supporters. A court in Tomsk has imposed a nine-year prison sentence on Xenia Fadeyeva, her supporters said on the online service Telegram. Her lawyer will appeal the verdict.
Navalny’s team spoke of a new unjust verdict by the Russian arbitrary justice system. Fadeyeva is a courageous and honest woman, said Navalny’s spokeswoman Kira Yarmysch. She has now been tried in a non-public summary procedure. “Those who did this to her will definitely receive their punishment.”
Fadeyeva’s supporters reported that an ambulance had to be called on December 27th. Accordingly, the politician and her lawyer had become sick because they had not received food during a twelve-hour negotiation.
Fadeyeva arrested two years ago
Fadeyeva is a local politician from Tomsk. She led Navalny’s team in the Siberian city where the Kremlin critic was poisoned during a visit in August 2020. Shortly afterwards, Fadeyeva was elected to the Tomsk city council along with other activists, a rare success for the Russian opposition at the time.
In 2021, Navalny’s organizations were classified as “extremist” by the authorities and banned. Many of Navalny’s allies then left the country to avoid criminal prosecution. Fadeyeva, however, remained in Russia and was arrested in December 2021 on charges of organizing an “extremist” group. Her trial began in mid-August.