June 14 (Reuters) – Russian opponent Alexei Navalny has been transferred from the No. 2 penal colony in Pokrov, 120 km from Moscow, where he has been imprisoned since March 2021, his right-hand man Leonid Volkov said on Tuesday.
“We don’t know where Alexei is now, or to which colony he was taken,” said Alexei Navalny’s chief of staff on Telegram messaging.
The lawyer and anti-corruption activist, who for a dozen years has become the main opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was sentenced in February 2021 to two and a half years in prison for violation of his judicial control after a previous conviction for embezzlement funds, a charge he denies.
He was then sentenced on March 24 to an additional nine years in prison for fraud and contempt of court.
Navalny, who denounces fabricated accusations, had pleaded not guilty.
The court also ordered that he be transferred to a high security prison, where his visiting rights and correspondence would be further restricted.
Two weeks ago, Alexeï Navalny announced that he was the subject of a new charge for forming an extremist organization and inciting hatred towards the authorities which could earn him fifteen years in prison. (Reuters report, French version Jean-Stéphane Brosse)
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