Russian slammed with 2.5-year prison for protesting and throwing a stone fragment


nsnbc : A Russian court, on Thursday, sentenced the 32-year-old Chechen war veteran Stanislav Zimovets to 2.5-years in prison for throwing a rock at a National Guard officer during an unsanctioned anti-corruption demonstration organized by opposition activist Alexey Navalny in central Moscow on March 26.

Stanislav Zimovets_Moscow_Russia_Jul 2017Presenting officers as witnesses and showing video, purportedly showing him throwing a stone in court, the prosecution demanded a three-year sentence for Zimovets.

The 32-year-old veteran and protester had initially plead guilty but then retracted, claiming he had been manipulated into a forced confession.

Zimovets admitted to throwing a small brick fragment but added that he had not aimed to intentionally target the officer who allegedly was struck.

Zimovets’ defense maintained that the video didn’t actually show the brick fragment hitting anyone.

Zimovets is one of hundreds who were arrested during protests in Moscow, St Petersburg and other cities, including a number of Russian as well as foreign journalists. Zimovets is the third person to be given a prison sentence as of July 20.

Following the announcement of Zimovets’ conviction, opposition politician and activist Navalny (also nicknamed Kravalny) wrote on Twitter: “What beasts. He’s an innocent person. We need to make sure that the judges, prosecutors and investigators themselves end up on the defendant’s bench.”

CH/L – nsnbc 20.07.2017

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More than 1,000 detained during anti-corruption protests in Russia



Source Article from https://nsnbc.me/2017/07/20/russian-slammed-with-2-5-year-prison-for-protesting-and-throwing-a-stone-fragment/

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