Moscow critic and former publisher sentenced to 8 years for defaming Russian forces in Ukraine war

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — A former Russian publisher and chief editor has been sentenced to eight years in prison in absentia for defaming Russia’s armed forces involved in the war on Ukraine. A Moscow court sentenced Ilya Krasilshchik on Thursday. He has left Russia. He was the editor-in-chief of Russian entertainment and lifestyle magazine Afisha and former publisher of the Riga-based exiled Russian news outlet Meduza. An arrest warrant was issued for him in March over materials he published online about atrocities by Russian armed forces in the Ukrainian city of Bucha. Spreading “false information” about Russia’s military became a criminal offense a week after the invasion started in February 2022.