Lawyer arrested over attacks on Russian opposition figures appears to ask Khodorkovsky for bail in newly published letter

Journalist Liza Rozovsky published photos on Tuesday of a handwritten letter purportedly written by Anatoly Blinov, the Russian lawyer arrested in Poland in September on suspicion of organizing an attack on former Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK) board chairman Leonid Volkov in Vilnius.

The letter, dated November 18, is addressed to former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, whose close friend and former associate, Leonid Nevzlin, has been accused by FBK of ordering the attack through Blinov. The letter writer refers to Khodorkovsky as his “last hope” and claims he is under arrest due to a “direct false accusation” and “false information.”

“I ask you for one thing: to help raise possible bail and cover legal fees so I can properly defend myself and present investigators with the necessary evidence of my innocence and of L. B. Nevzlin’s lack of involvement in these accusations,” the letter says.

The writer also apologizes to Nevzlin for the way the case has tarnished his reputation, describing him as “a man who has done so much for the Russian opposition” and for Blinov personally.

Mikhail Khodorkovsky responded on X, saying he “received a message through his press secretary from someone named Liza Rozovsky” requesting comment on the letter. “I have only one question: who’s the dumb provocateur here?” Khodorkovsky wrote.

Nevzlin, who owns a 25% stake in Rozovsky’s employer, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, has denied any involvement in “any attacks on people, in any form whatsoever.”