MOSCOW, September 26 - RAPSI. On Wednesday the Moscow City Court upheld the sentencing terms set for Alexei Kozlov, who was convicted to five years in prison for wrongful possession of shares. Kozlov will now serve his time at a penal settlement, although initially he was sentenced to a (higher security) penal colony, the court told the Russian Legal Information Agency (RAPSI/rapsinews.com).

The court dismissed Kozlov's appeal of the ruling of Moscow Presnensky District Court judge Tatyana Vasyuchenko, who amended the sentence one month after it was issued.

Yury Kostanov, Kozlov's attorney, has said he may appeal within a year to have the ruling revoked as he believes it to be illegitimate.

According to investigators, Kozlov and two other individuals stole 626,000 shares from Izkozh, a company which produces artificial leather and film materials, by using forged documents and false front companies. Kozlov was arrested and in 2009 he was sentenced to eight years in prison. The Moscow City Court subsequently reduced the sentence.

Kozlov's defense team and his wife, journalist Olga Romanova, have stated on numerous occasions that the case was falsified.