Moscow’s Basmanny District Court sentenced blogger Michael Naki in absentia to five years in a penal colony for publicly calling for activities aimed at undermining Russia’s security (Article 280.4, Part 2, Paragraph “c” of the Criminal Code). It also barred him from administering websites for five years.
The prosecution stemmed from a video posted on Naki’s channel on May 7, 2024. According to Mediazona, the video was titled “Putin can now be eliminated. The day Putin stopped being president.” Prosecutors said the video contained signs of “incitement to overthrow the government in Russia.”
This is Naki’s second sentence in absentia. In 2023, the Basmanny District Court sentenced him to 11 years in a penal colony for spreading “fake news” about the army (Article 207.3, Part 2, Paragraph “d” of the Criminal Code). That case concerned a video in which Naki and Conflict Intelligence Team founder Ruslan Leviev recapped the ninth day of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The court combined portions of the sentences in the two cases to impose a total term of 14 years in a penal colony.
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