Russian authorities have issued an arrest warrant for Oleg Navalny, the younger brother of the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny. This development comes just days after Alexei’s unexplained death in a brutal Arctic prison. The warrant was issued by the federal police, as reported by Russia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs, although the specific charge against Oleg remains undisclosed.
Oleg Navalny, a staunch supporter of his brother’s opposition movement, was already on the Ministry’s wanted list in connection with another case. He had been accused of violating Russia’s COVID restrictions by encouraging people to participate in Alexei Navalny’s unsanctioned anti-government protests. Oleg had previously denounced the charge as politically motivated.
In January 2021, Oleg received a one-year suspended sentence in the aforementioned case. As part of his probation, he was subjected to restrictions such as a curfew, prohibition from attending mass events, and travel outside Moscow. However, six months later, a correctional inspection requested Oleg’s imprisonment. By the time the court approved his incarceration in February 2022, Oleg had already fled Russia, with reports suggesting he may have boarded a flight to Cyprus. His current whereabouts remain unknown.
Oleg Navalny has faced legal troubles in the past. In 2014, he was sentenced to 3.5 years in prison on a fraud conviction related to the Russian subsidiary of the French cosmetics company Yves Rocher. He was released in 2018. Critics of the Kremlin have argued that the case against Oleg was fabricated to exert pressure on his late brother, who himself received a suspended sentence after being found guilty of fraud.
