Russian prosecutors seek 15-year prison sentence for lawyer Maria Bontsler in treason case

Detailed summary

Bontsler is known for representing defendants in politically sensitive cases. She was detained in late May 2025 and has remained in pre-trial detention ever since.

Editor's note: This story was adapted from the original VOA Russian article.

Russian Prosecutors have asked a court to sentence Kaliningrad lawyer Maria Bontsler to 15 years in prison on charges of high treason.

Bontsler is known for representing defendants in politically sensitive cases. She was detained in late May 2025 and has remained in pre-trial detention ever since.

Slovo Zashchite, translated in English as "A Word to the Defense," first reported the news, citing attorney Ilya Sidorov, who visited Bontsler in pretrial detention. Sidorov was on Bontsler's defense team until July 2026, when he was removed from the case.

Bontsler could deliver her final statement in court Wednesday before the verdict is handed down.

She was initially accused of confidential cooperation with a foreign state. Investigators say Bontsler passed information about Russian security officers to Ukraine’s SBU security service.

Authorities later reclassified the case as high treason, a charge that carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years under Russian law.

She is currently being held in a detention center in Kaliningrad, and according to Bontsler's lawyer, her health has deteriorated in prison due to complications related to diabetes and hypertension.

Valeria Vetoshkina, a lawyer with the independent human rights group OVD-Info, told VOA that Bontsler's physical condition remains a major concern.

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