Report: Russian Court To Hear Navalny Appeal On Sentence Change February 20

The Moscow City Court will consider an appeal of the decision to convert opposition politician Aleksei Navalny's suspended sentence to real jail time on February 20, the RIA Novosti news agency reported.

RIA Novosti reported on February 12 that it learned of the hearing through a lawyer with knowledge of the court's decision.

The Kremlin critic on February 2 was ordered to serve 2 years and 8 months in prison for violating the terms of a suspended sentence imposed on him from a widely criticized 2014 embezzlement case.

Navalny could not report to parole officers because he was recovering from a coma in Germany after being poisoned with a nerve-agent in Siberia last August, in an attack he blames on Putin and his security agents. The Kremlin dismisses the allegations.

Navalny was immediately arrested on returning to Russia in January, triggering nationwide protests and a crackdown on his allies and supporters.

Based on reporting by RIA Novosti