MOSCOW: A Moscow court yesterday sentenced a participant in a May 6 protest against President Vladimir Putin to four-and-a-half years in prison for taking part in a mass riot and using violence against the police.
Maxim Luzyanin, a businessman, had pleaded guilty to the charges over his role in the chaotic protest on the eve of Putin’s inauguration for a third Kremlin term, the Itar-Tass news agency said.
He is the first person to be convicted in a wide-ranging criminal probe over the rally which has seen a total of 17 protestors charged and the opposition has slammed as part of a new crackdown on civil society.AFP
