Russian 'Crab King' Sentenced In Absentia To 17 Years For Ordering Rival's Murder

A Russian court sentenced businessman Oleg Kan in absentia on April 26 to 17 years in prison after being convicted of ordering the assassination of a business rival in 2010. Kan, known in Russia as the "Crab King," was an influential businessman who accumulated significant wealth by exporting seafood from Russia's Sakhalin island. He fled Russia in 2018 after a probe was launched against him. Kan's lawyers claimed later that their client died of cancer in Britain in 2023. Russian officials presume that Kan is alive, saying that his death was not registered with the Russian authorities. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Russian Service, click here.