KIROV,
Russia — Russia’s most prominent opposition leader was released from police
custody on Friday, a day after his conviction on embezzlement charges, as the
Russian authorities edged back from a decision that set off angry protests in
several of Russia’s largest cities.
Late on
Thursday the prosecutor in Kirov, where Aleksei A. Navalny was convicted and
sentenced to five years in prison, petitioned the judge to release him pending
his appeal, arguing that the arrest prevented him from taking part in the
Moscow mayoral election. That could keep Mr. Navalny out of prison for more
than a month, perhaps temporarily neutralizing the anger at the verdict while
allowing him to run for mayor of Moscow in September.
Mr.
Navalny, who famously branded President Vladimir V. Putin’s United Russia
political machine the “party of swindlers and thieves,” was apparently singled
out by the Kremlin after having grown in stature from his beginnings as an
anti-corruption blogger and leader of street protests to a populist candidate
for mayor.
Asked to
make a comment during the hearing Friday, Mr. Navalny, who seemed in good
spirits, reflected on the bizarre nature of the prosecutor’s motion to release
him.
“I
request that you verify the identity of Prosecutor Sergei Bogdanov,” he said.
“It’s possible that it is not Prosecutor Bogdanov but his double. Because it
was namely Prosecutor Bogdanov demanded that I be arrested in the courtroom.”
Although
the prosecutor’s motivation was not clear, Mr. Navalny’s supporters believed
the protests had swung the balance.
As crowds
of demonstrators swirled near Manezh Square in Moscow on Thursday night, Dmitri
Gudkov, a political opposition leader and member of Parliament who attended Mr.
Navalny’s sentencing, wrote on Twitter: “Tomorrow morning he may be released.
Manezh, this is thanks to you!” That was later confirmed by Vadim Kobzev, Mr.
Navalny’s lawyer, who called it “a clearly political decision.”
By early
morning on Friday, as many as 200 people had been detained in Moscow, Aleksei
Mayorov, a municipal security official, told Interfax. Despite tight security,
protesters managed to mass at a major intersection on Thursday night and at one
point the crowds blocked the main artery leading to the Kremlin gates. The
police estimated the crowd at 2,000, while protesters said it was upward of
5,000.
The
Navalny case has captivated Moscow. When speaking before a crowd, Mr. Navalny
projects a raw charisma. He was the leader in a popular opposition movement in
which huge numbers of demonstrators poured into the streets demanding the rule
of law and political reform. But when Mr. Putin returned to the presidency, his
crackdown managed to discourage or frighten many of Mr. Navalny’s supporters —
young, professional, tech-savvy Russians — into silence.
Telegraph.co.uk
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