A lawyer for jailed Russian oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky says she has appealed his sentence of six more years in prison, a punishment seen as revenge for challenging Vladimir Putin’s power.
Karinna Moskalenko said she launched the appeal on Friday on the final work day before a 10-day New Year vacation.
Ms. Moskalenko says Khodorkovsky’s conviction on charges of stealing almost $30 billion worth of oil between 1998 and 2003 from his Yukos company and laundering the proceeds had nothing to do with justice.
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Khodorkovsky’s business partner Platon Lebedev received the same sentence on Thursday. His lawyer also appealed.
The ruling drew strong condemnation from western governments, who called it evidence of the use of Russia’s judicial system for political ends.