BISHKEK -- Noted Kyrgyz investigative journalist Bolot Temirov has been acquitted of drug charges that he and his supporters called politically motivated.
The Sverdlov district court on September 28 found Temirov not guilty on charges of illegal drugs possession and illegal border crossing.
Judge Akylbek Adimov also ruled that Temirov was guilty of document forgery but could not be sentenced for that due to the statute of limitations.
Temirov said in the courtroom before the court's ruling was pronounced that law enforcement and security officers had been actively trying to curb freedom of expression in the country by imposing trumped-up charges against journalists, adding that the trend must be stopped.
Prosecutors had sought five years in prison for Temirov on the charges.
Temirov and traditional bard singer Bolot Nazarov, who performed his anti-corruption songs on the YouTube channel Temirov Live, were arrested in January for allegedly possessing illegal drugs, which the two men say were planted by police.
SEE ALSO: Kyrgyz Musician Back In Kazakhstan For Probe Into His Alleged Beating While In Police CustodyIn April, Bishkek city police filed additional charges against Temirov, accusing him of forgery and illegally crossing the border with Russia.
Police said Temirov, who was born and raised in Russia and holds a Russian passport, used forged documents to obtain a Kyrgyz passport in 2008, which he then used to illegally exit and enter Kyrgyzstan.
Temirov rejected all of the charges, saying they were brought against him after he published the results of his investigation suggesting corruption among top officials of the Central Asian state.
Kyrgyz authorities have denied that investigations of Temirov are politically motivated.
Temirov was among 12 people recognized by the U.S. State Department last year as anti-corruption champions.