(27 Aug 2019) A European court ruling Tuesday blaming Russia over the death of jailed lawyer Sergei Magnitsky has been welcomed by his former employer, US-born financier Bill Browder.
The European Court of Human Rights ruled that Russia's failure to provide adequate medical care for Magnitsky could have led to his 2009 death, which sparked U.S. and European sanctions.
It ordered Russia to pay Magnitsky's widow and mother 34,000 euros ($38,000) in damages.
Browder, in an interview with The Associated Press, described the verdict as a "huge vindication" for the Magnitsky family.
Magnitsky, an accountancy expert who worked for an international investment firm, alleged he had uncovered $230 million in tax fraud by Russian officials - and was then jailed, accused of tax evasion himself.
He died after a year in pre-trial detention, aged 37, and a Russian court found him guilty of fraud four years later.
The court said Russian authorities' handling of Magnitsky's medical problems were "manifestly inadequate" and "unreasonably put his life in danger."
It found Russia's handling of his detention, the investigation into his death and his posthumous conviction all constituted violations of Magnitsky's rights.
A Russian presidential commission concluded that Magnitsky had been beaten and denied medical care.
Magnitsky worked in Russia for Browder and his London-based investment fund, Hermitage Capital Management.
Browder has mounted a campaign to bring Magnitsky's killers to justice and successfully lobbied U.S. lawmakers to impose travel and financial sanctions on top Russian officials.
Several other countries have since adopted legislation modeled on the 2012 Magnitsky Act.
Browder said Tuesday's ruling is important as a way to heap pressure on more nations and the European Union to pass similar laws.
"So in my mind, we can't get justice inside of Russia, and we're only going to get a sort of symbolic monetary judgment at the European Court of Human Rights. We need to get real justice outside and that is going after the money that these people have," Browder said.
"And since their ready to kill for money, they value money. They value money more than human life."
The Russian Justice Ministry said it is studying the ruling and whether to appeal.
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