Russia: ex-governor of Khabarovsk, Sergei Furgal sentenced to 22 years in prison

Sergei Furgal, former governor of the Khabarovsk region along the border with China, pictured before a hearing at the Moscow Regional Court, Friday, February 10, 2023. AP - Alexander Zemlianichenko

Text by: Anissa El Jabri Follow

1 min

His arrest in the summer of 2020 sparked demonstrations of a rare scale in the Russian Far East.

The former governor of the Khabarovsk region, Sergei Fourgal, was sentenced on Friday February 10 to 22 years in prison for ordering two murders.

The accused still maintains his innocence.

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From our correspondent in Moscow,

2018, Sergueï Fourgal is largely elected governor.

Extremely popular, he gave the leadership of this prosperous region on the Pacific coast to the candidate of the United Russia presidential party, but not for very long.

Barely two years later, he was arrested, charged with multiple criminal offenses, including ordering two murders.

He calls himself innocent and that is what his constituents believe.

For them, the arrest is politically motivated.

The region is then the scene of powerful demonstrations, every Saturday, in the main city (600,000 inhabitants).

We shout our support for Sergei Fourgal and we chant anti-Kremlin slogans.

It is then the most important protest movement against the power for several years in Russia outside of Moscow.

This Friday, in the Russian capital, Sergei Fourgal was sentenced to spend the next 22 years in a high security prison.

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