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Moscow Prosecutors Refuse To Indict Ukrainian Library Director


Natalya Sharina , the head of Moscow's Ukrainian Literature Library, at a court hearing late last year.
Natalya Sharina , the head of Moscow's Ukrainian Literature Library, at a court hearing late last year.

The prosecutor's office in Moscow has refused to indict Ukrainian Literature Library Director Natalya Sharina, who was facing charges of extremism and embezzlement.

Sharina's lawyer, Ivan Pavlov, said on August 15 that the prosecutor's office had returned the case to investigators, adding that no reason for the action was provided.

Sharina was detained in October and charged with inciting extremism and ethnic hatred because the library's collection allegedly included books by Ukrainian ultranationalist author Dmytro Korchynskiy, whose works are banned in Russia.

She was placed under house arrest.

In April, investigators charged Sharina with misallocating library funds, allegedly because she used library funds to pay for her legal defense in another extremism case against her that was dismissed in 2013.

Attorney Pavlov said the authorities had "trumped up" new charges after realizing their initial case against his client was too weak.

Sharina has rejected all the allegations, saying they are politically motivated.

Based on reporting by Interfax and rapsinews.ru

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