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Opposition Activist Lebedev Sentenced To Prison Term


Russian civil rights activist Konstantin Lebedev
Russian civil rights activist Konstantin Lebedev
Russian civil rights activist Konstantin Lebedev has been convicted of organizing mass disorders in Moscow last year.

On April 25, the Moscow City Court sentenced Lebedev to two and a half years in prison.

At the start of his trial on April 22, Lebedev pleaded guilty and expressed remorse for his actions.

Investigators charged that Lebedev -- along with opposition Left Front coordinator Sergei Udaltsov, activist Leonid Razvozzhayev, and Georgian politician Givi Targamadze -- organized violent demonstrations on Moscow's Bolotnaya Square in May, 2012.

Last October, a pro-Kremlin television channel aired a documentary claiming Targamadze met with Udaltsov to plan riots.

Udaltsov, Lebedev and Razvozzhayev, were later charged with organizing mass disorder.

Razvozzhayev was arrested in October. Udaltsov is under house arrest. In February, Russia issued an international arrest warrant for Targamadze.

Prosecutors say Lebedev will testify against the others.

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