Russian opposition firebrand Alexei Navalny will have to pay 4.5 million rubles ($67,000) to the Multidisciplinary Processing Company, the determined victim in the Yves Rocher case, the Interfax news agency reported Wednesday, citing the database of the Federal Court Marshals Service.
Navalny and his brother Oleg were convicted in December 2014 of embezzling 30 million rubles (about $442,000 at the time) from two companies, including the Russian branch of French cosmetics giant Yves Rocher.
Navalny was given a suspended sentence of 3 1/2 years, while his brother was sentenced to a prison term of the same duration. Both denied the accusations and claimed the case was politically motivated.
Because of a civil suit filed by Multidisciplinary Processing Company, Navalny will have to pay 4.5 million rubles in compensation, the opposition leader wrote on his blog Wednesday.
Apparently, the company was forced to go forward with the suit, he said, because its representatives claimed the Russian Investigative Committee had established the extent of the damages.
“They hadn't been going forward with the suit for half a year, and now they've been asked to do so,” Navalny added.