Russian billionaire Alexander Lebedev, the owner of several media outlets in Russia and Great Britain, has started his trial in Moscow today for attacking an interlocutor in a television show.
Before the trial began, Lebedev, who co-owns the opposition newspaper Nova Gazeta with former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, said the trial was rigged.
Charged with "hooliganism", Lebedev faces five years in prison if found guilty.
"I think everything, from beginning to end, is fabricated," Lebedev told reporters, assessing that the decision to prosecute him was made, in fact, because of his political views.
Lebedev, as seen in the videos, punched Russian businessman Sergey Polonsky during a show on the NTV channel in 2011. Polonski fell from his chair and then stood up without visible injuries.
However, Polonski did not attend the beginning of the trial today because he has been in prison in Cambodia since December 31 for violent behavior.
Lebedev, a former member of the KGB secret service, is highly critical of the Kremlin's policies.
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