Russian attorney general demands Navalny's imprisonment

MOSCOW

The Russian Attorney General's Office said on Monday it will demand in court to cancel a suspended sentence for Russian opposition politician Alexey Navalny and put him in jail.

In a statement published on its official website, the office said Navalny's "illegal behavior" became a foundation for demanding cancellation of the suspended sentence and execution of the jail sentence imposed by the court verdict.

In 2014, Navalny was convicted for fraud and embezzlement and sentenced to three years and six months of jail time.

The court suspended the sentence on six-year probation, obliging Navalny to register with the police two times per month.

In 2020, after Navalny's alleged poisoning with a nerve-agent, Novichok, the registration with the police was halted for the period of treatment.

In October 2020, it became known that Navalny was discharged from the clinic. According to the Russian Federal Penitentiary Service, he did not provide any objective reasons for his non-appearance at police, and therefore it put Navalny on the wanted list for evading the control of the criminal executive inspectorate.

On his return to Russia on Jan. 17, Navalny was arrested at the airport, which provoked mass protests throughout Russia.

According to the human rights activists, over 5,000 people throughout Russia were detained in the latest unauthorized rallies in Navalny's support on Jan. 31.

The largest number of detentions occurred in the capital Moscow -- 1,608 people -- and in the second-largest city Saint Petersburg -- 1,122.

Navalny will appear in court on Feb. 2 on hearing about replacing his suspended sentence for real prison time.