A Russian court sentenced prominent lawyer Dmitry Talantov to seven years in prison Thursday for criticizing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on social media, marking another prosecution under wartime censorship laws.
Talantov, 64, the former head of the Udmurtia Bar Association, was arrested in July 2022 after comparing Russian military actions in the Ukrainian cities of Mariupol and Bucha to “Nazi practices.” Prosecutors charged him under censorship legislation enacted shortly after the invasion began, accusing him of spreading “fake” information about the Russian army and inciting hatred.
“I am 64, and it is hard for me to imagine coming out of prison alive,” Talantov said in a recorded court statement published by rights group Perviy Otdel, maintaining his criticism of the war despite doubts about surviving his sentence.
Before his arrest, Talantov represented Ivan Safronov, a military affairs journalist whose 22-year treason sentence in 2021 shocked Russia’s media community.
Source: themoscowtimes
