Rauf Arashukov, a former senator, sentenced to life in prison on charges of organizing two murders

A Moscow municipal court has sentenced Rauf Arashukov, a former Russian senator from the Karachay-Cherkess Republic, to life in prison for organizing two contract killings and participating in organized crime.

Arashukov’s father, Raul Arashukov, a former adviser to the director of the gas company Gazprom Mezhregiongaz, was also sentenced to life in prison.

The Prosecutor General required life terms for both Arashukovs.

• Rauf Arashukov was arrested in January 2019 in the Federation Council chambers, where state senators assemble. The former senator calls the events political persecution.