Russia: Ex-Khabarovsk governor Sergei Furgal sentenced to 22 years in prison

Sergei Furgal, a former governor of Khabarovsk in Russia, was on Friday (February 10) sentenced to 22 years in prison for allegedly organising two murders. Speaking to the news agency AFP, a spokesperson for the Moscow Regional Court said that Furgal, 52, was sentenced for attempted murder and organising the killing of two businessmen in Russia's far east nearly 20 years ago. His lawyers, meanwhile, said, that they would appeal the sentencing and seek his acquittal.

"We consider the sentence to be passed unlawfully. Today, the judge had a final chance (to influence the sentence). According to the law, he had the right to reject the jury's verdict, acquit or dismiss the jury and schedule a new court hearing. Moreover, this decision could have not been appealed. The judge, Gennady Alexeyevich Tsoi did not avail himself of that right. In fact, he confirmed an unlawful – we can say it now – jury verdict," Boris Kozhemyakin, a lawyer for Furgal, said, reported Reuters.

Earlier in February, a jury found Furgal guilty of organising two murders and one attempted murder. Amember of the nationalist Liberal-Democratic Party, Furgal won a surprise election victory in 2018 when he rode a wave of anti-Moscow sentiment to oust a sitting pro-Kremlin governor.

In July 2020, Furgal was arrested while he was serving as Khabarovsk's governor and his detention sparked massive protests in the city. Tens of thousands of people in Khabarovsk to the streets for weeks before the rallies eventually stopped. Smaller protests took place in nearby cities and towns, including Komsomolsk-on-Amur and the Pacific port of Vladivostok in the next-door Primorsky Krai region, the AFP report said.

Furgal's supporters called for a fair trial for him and not in Moscow, where he has been held since his arrest. The report added that the protests were unprecedented for almost any Russian city outside Moscow and Saint Petersburg.

The supporters also said that the charges were politically motivated to punish him for taking too independent a line from Moscow.

(With inputs from agencies)

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