MOSCOW (AP) – Multi-billionaire Alisher Usmanov has won a defamation lawsuit against Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
The judge at Moscow’s Lyublinsky district court on Wednesday ordered Navalny to remove his YouTube documentary about Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev’s alleged wealth from the web and publish a retraction. Usmanov has sued Navalny over the findings. Navalny said he would appeal the ruling.
Navalny, who made his name with a blog exposing official corruption, has published legal documents showing that Usmanov, along with several other Russian billionaires, transferred lucrative assets to a charity foundation run by Medvedev’s former classmate.
Medvedev has denied any connection to the property while Usmanov has insisted that the transfer of the ownership of a luxurious mansion to the charity foundation was a bona fide business deal.