October 22, 2026, 5:47 PMRSSRU

Leonid Tikhonov

At largeChecked October 18, 2026

Leonid Tikhonov, born 1963, Primorsky Krai. Charges: Article 160 part 3, Russian Criminal Code (Theft of someone else's property using official position or on a large scale); “The dockers' case”. Sentence (April 6, 2015): The sentence was reduced by two months due to full compensation for material damage. Status: at large. Recognition: Union of Solidarity with Political Prisoners — recognised as a political prisoner, February 11, 2016; Memorial Human Rights Centre — recognised as a political prisoner, May 6, 2015.

In brief

Primorsky Krai · Nakhodka · Manual workers

Sentence

3 years 4 months

The sentence was reduced by two months due to full compensation for material damage

Sentence changed April 6, 2015

First instance, December 14, 2014: 3 years 6 months

Charges

Full wording of the charges

embezzled and misappropriated money allocated to the trade union for New Year gifts for employees and for ordering a bus for a collective outing to the countryside

Latest event

October 12, 2016 — persecution ends

Checked October 18, 2026 · no changes since October 15

Recognition by rights defenders

Timeline

  1. · Persecution ends

  2. · Recognised as a political prisoner

    Union of Solidarity with Political Prisoners

  3. · Recognised as a political prisoner

    Memorial Human Rights Centre

  4. · Appeal ruling

    sentence changed · 3 years 4 months

  5. · Preventive measure: pre-trial detention

  6. · First-instance verdict

    guilty verdict · 3 years 6 months

Criminal case

The dockers' case

Other defendants in the case

Thematic group: The dockers' case

Details and sources

Full summary

According to OVD-Info

The first searches and initiation of criminal proceedings took place two and a half weeks after a rally of Vostochny Port employees organized by a trade union led by Tikhonov on June 2, 2012; the initiation of criminal proceedings was also preceded by Tikhonov's appeal to the prosecutor's office regarding Vostochny Port's expenses on organizing sports and cultural events for its employees (information about these expenses was not provided to the trade union); the case was initiated on the application of Anatoly Lazarev, the managing director of Vostochny Port; in accordance with the law, the case was initiated on the basis of a complaint filed by Anatoly Lazarev, the managing director of Vostochny Port; in accordance with the port's collective agreement, the owner of the transferred funds, which Tikhonov was accused of embezzlement and misappropriation, was the primary public trade union organization (POPO) of JSC Vostochny Port, the Russian Dockers' Trade Union (RDTU), from the moment they were credited; neither during the investigation, nor in court, neither the primary trade union organization nor the RDTU recognized themselves as victims of the actions of the defendants; an independent audit commission of the RDTU checked Tikhonov's actions and found no misuse of the funds; at sentencing, the court rejected the testimony of all defense witnesses, members of the Vostochny Port trade union, who confirmed the fact of purchase of gifts and refute the fact of embezzlement and misappropriation of funds allocated for their purchase. Only the testimony of the prosecution witnesses, who stated that they did not receive gifts in cash or in kind, was found credible; on December 15, 2014, the Nakhodka City Court found Tikhonov guilty of committing crimes under Part 3 Article 160 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (misappropriation or embezzlement using his official position, as well as on a large scale); he was sentenced to three and a half years' imprisonment in a general regime colony with a ban on engaging in trade union activities for three years; later, the court of appeal reduced the sentence by two months due to the fact that the material damage was fully compensated; he was later transferred to a settlement colony

All fields of the record
Citizenship
Russia
Sources (2)

Other people prosecuted under Article 160 part 3, Russian Criminal Code

Under the same article, not necessarily in the same case.

All 5 under this article →