Amnesty International Hails Verdict to Politkovskaya Killer

"While we welcome today’s verdict and the long-awaited prosecutions of Anna Politskovskaya’s killers, this case can never truly be closed until those who ordered her murder are named and brought to justice,” said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International’s Director for Europe and Central Asia.

A Moscow court sentenced a former police officer to 11 years in prison on Friday for his role in the 2006 killing of investigative journalist Politkovskaya. Dmitry Pavlyuchenkov was convicted in a separate trial from the others accused of involvement in the killing, the mastermind of which remains at liberty.

"We are urging prosecutors to keep digging up the truth, no matter how politically inconvenient,” Dalhuisen said in a statement.

Politkovskaya, a reporter with opposition-minded Novaya Gazeta newspaper, was shot dead in the elevator of her apartment building on October 7, 2006. Investigators suspect the murder was linked to her work, which frequently produced reports critical of the Kremlin’s policy in the North Caucasus and the leadership in Chechnya.