A Russian court has sentenced 26-year-old Ukrainian woman Irina Navalnaya to eight years in prison for allegedly planning an explosion on the day Russia claimed to annex four Ukrainian regions. The independent news site Mediazona reported this on Monday, citing Navalnaya’s lawyer.
Navalnaya was detained by Russian forces in Mariupol in September 2022, facing charges of attempted terrorism and illegal possession of explosives. Authorities accused her of collaborating with Ukrainian intelligence to stage a blast at the Russian-installed administrative building on September 27, during a controversial referendum to annex parts of Ukraine under Russian occupation amid the ongoing invasion.
Having evacuated Mariupol during Russia’s siege in spring 2022, Navalnaya returned in August of the same year. She later alleged that police tortured her to secure a false confession. Ukrainian officials have classified Navalnaya as a prisoner of war, as reported by Mediazona, which quoted her mother.
On Monday, the Southern Military District Court in Rostov-on-Don found Navalnaya guilty and sentenced her to a general-security penal colony for eight years. Prosecutors initially sought a 14-year term and a 400,000-ruble ($4,100) fine.
The court reduced the sentence, dismissing claims of multiple conspirators and declining the fine request. Navalnaya’s lawyer, Ivan Bondarenko, indicated that the prosecution’s case weakened when one of the three witnesses retracted their statement, undermining the testimonies of the remaining witnesses.
“This undermined the case,” Bondarenko stated, adding that he had pushed for an acquittal and planned to appeal. “In our reality, an eight-year sentence is practically a ‘concession’ from the court. Everyone knows this, yet they won’t acquit her,” he added.
Navalnaya does not appear to have any connection to the late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, though he had relatives from northern Ukraine.