×
Enjoying ad-free content?
Since July 1, 2024, we have disabled all ads to improve your reading experience.
This commitment costs us $10,000 a month. Your support can help us fill the gap.
Support us
Our journalism is banned in Russia. We need your help to keep providing you with the truth.

Prosecutors Find No Violations in Parole Denial for Lebedev

Lebedev, right, in court in 2009. Maxim Stulov

An appeal regarding a parole request by Platon Lebedev, the former business partner of jailed oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, has been rejected by Arkhangelsk prosecutors.

Lebedev's lawyers had filed an appeal to prosecutors in the northern region where the former Bank Menatep head is imprisoned asking to determine whether legal violations had been committed in an earlier court decision rejecting a parole request by Lebedev. His lawyers also filed a complaint regarding the actions of certain employees of the prosecutor's office.

Arkhangelsk prosecutor's office spokeswoman Yulia Shevchenko told RIA-Novosti that there were no grounds for reviewing the decision rejecting his parole request or for investigating the employees implicated by Lebedev's lawyers.

Lebedev and Khodorkovsky are serving prison terms for convictions on charges of embezzlement and money laundering and are scheduled to be released in 2016.

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more