MOSCOW, February 8 (RAPSI) – Former governor of Russia’s Kirov Region, Nikita Belykh, has appealed a ruling of the Presnensky District Court of Moscow sentencing him to 8 years in a penal colony, according to lawyer Andrey Gorokhov.

On February 1, the court found Belykh guilty of taking a large-scale bribe. Apart from the prison term, Belykh was fined 48.2 million rubles (about $860,700) and prohibited from holding state and municipal offices for 3 years. The ex-governor was found guilty of being involved in only one instance of bribery.

The court established that Belykh received the bribe in a Moscow restaurant on June 24, 2016. He was arrested by the police red-handed.

In January, prosecutors asked to sentence the ex-governor to 10 years and fine him 100 million rubles (about $1.78 million) and to ban him from holding state and municipal offices for 8 years.