A Moscow judge today found oil magnate Mikhail Khodorkovsky guilty of four of the charges against him.
Supporters of Russian oil magnate Mikhail Khodorkovsky rally calling for his release today. Photo: Reuters
The former head of Russian oil major Yukos
was found guilty of theft with conspiracy, damage to property rights via fraud, malicious failure to obey a court order and personal tax evasion.
Judge Irina Kolesnikova began reading the verdict on seven charges, which may take up to three days, as soon as the court convened in central Moscow this morning, the news agency Interfax said.
The case that has scared investors and damaged President Vladimir Putin's image abroad.
Outside the courtroom about 500 supporters of Mr Khodorkovsky gathered with banners calling for his release, one of which read: "Mikhail in jail is Russia's shame".
Mr Khodorkovsky was arrested 17 months ago and has been held in prison. His oil firm has since been crushed under the weight of a $27.5 billion back-tax bill.
The prosecution is seeking the maximum 10-year prison term for Mr Khodorkovsky.
Mr Khodorkovsky, and his co-defendant Platon Lebedev - a Yukos minority shareholder facing similar charges - were driven to the court in an armoured mini-van with tinted windows and escorted in handcuffs into the courtroom by armed guards.
The two were listening to their fate from the metal cage in the courtroom where they have watched the trial since it started last June.
Mr Khodorkovsky has branded the trial a farce. It is widely seen as part of a Kremlin campaign to destroy him and take back the company he built in murky privatisation deals of the 1990s.
The Kremlin, which suspects Mr Khodorkovsky of having dangerous political ambitions, has denied any role in his downfall.