State prosecutors in Pskov have asked a judge to sentence veteran opposition politician Lev Shlosberg to 12 years and one month in prison on charges of 'discrediting' the Russian military and spreading 'fake news' about it, the liberal Yabloko party said Friday.
Pskov prosecutors seek 12-year prison term for Yabloko politician Lev Shlosberg
State prosecutors in Pskov have asked a judge to sentence veteran opposition politician Lev Shlosberg to 12 years and one month in prison on charges of 'discrediting' the Russian military and spreading 'fake news' about it, the liberal Yabloko party said Friday.
The requested term combines maximum penalties under Russia's wartime censorship laws with a November 2025 conviction in which Shlosberg was sentenced to 420 hours of community service for violating Russia's 'foreign agent' law, according to the exiled news outlet Mediazona.
The 'fake news' charge stems from a Feb. 25, 2022, Telegram post in which Shlosberg reshared content from the now-defunct Ekho Moskvy radio station. The post featured a British tabloid cover depicting President Vladimir Putin alongside a bloodied woman.
The separate 'discrediting' charge is linked to a January 2025 public debate in which Shlosberg was accused of calling for a ceasefire in Ukraine.
The sentencing request comes days after Russia's Supreme Court barred Yabloko's federal candidate list from upcoming State Duma elections. An appeal of that ruling is scheduled for Monday. A date for Shlosberg's verdict has not been announced.
- The source does not state the specific legal provisions under which the maximum penalties were calculated.
- The source does not provide the prosecution's stated rationale for why Shlosberg's Feb. 25, 2022 post constituted a violation despite his claim it predated the censorship laws.
- The source does not include any response or comment from the Pskov court or Russian federal prosecutorial authorities.
- The source does not state when the verdict is expected to be delivered.
- The source does not specify what content from Ekho Moskvy was reshared in the Feb. 25, 2022 post beyond describing the tabloid cover.
Read the original at The Moscow Times