Putin foe Navalny, convicted of fraud, says he has cut off tag monitoring his house arrest

MOSCOW – Russian anti-corruption crusader Alexei Navalny, the leading foe of President Vladimir Putin, says he has cut off the electronic bracelet that was monitoring his house arrest.

Navalny was convicted last week of fraud and given a suspended sentence of 3 ½ years. However, he was kept under house arrest pending appeal of the conviction.

Navalny claims it is illegal to keep him under house arrest after the conviction. On Monday, he said on his website that he had cut off the monitoring bracelet with a kitchen knife, but said he did not plan to go anywhere.

Navalny's brother Oleg was also convicted in the case, but was sent to prison for 3 ½ years. Alexei Navalny denounced that as a Kremlin strategy to silence opponents by afflicting their relatives.