Russian Authorities Imprison Lawyers Supporting Alexei Navalny Amid Ongoing Repression

Three lawyers connected with the late opposition figure Alexei Navalny were sentenced to prison for allegedly participating in an "extremist organisation," receiving terms of up to five-and-a-half years. Their trials have been described as reminiscent of Soviet-era repression, highlighting a growing crackdown on dissent in Russia.

Three lawyers who represented the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny have been sentenced to prison terms ranging from three-and-a-half to five-and-a-half years on charges linked to an "extremist organisation." The trio—Vadim Kobzev, Igor Sergunin, and Alexei Liptser—were arrested in October 2023 amid increasing government pressure following Navalny's sudden death in a remote Arctic prison colony last February.

The trials, conducted behind closed doors in the town of Petushki, focused on accusations that the lawyers were using their positions to facilitate communication between Navalny and his supporters. Alexei Navalny, recognizing this development as a throwback to Soviet-era tactics, criticized the proceedings as indicative of the deteriorating rule of law in Russia.

Among the three, Igor Sergunin was the only one who admitted to charges, resulting in a reduced sentence of three-and-a-half years. In contrast, Liptser received a five-year sentence, while Kobzev was sentenced to five-and-a-half years. Kobzev's legal representative, Andrei Grivtsov, emphasized that the evidence against them stemmed from unlawful surveillance, highlighting that regulations explicitly prohibit eavesdropping on lawyer-client communications.

The trials were held near the penal colony in Pokrov, where Navalny had been incarcerated since returning to Russia in January 2021 after surviving a nerve agent attack, which he attributed to President Vladimir Putin. The Kremlin consistently dismissed these allegations, while Navalny remained in custody until his death. His widow, Yulia Navalnaya, publicly accused Putin of responsibility for his demise, attributing it to "sudden death syndrome" as recorded by authorities.