Mikhail Leviev, a 56-year-old Jew who formerly managed a large government store in Moscow, has been sentenced to death for alleged economic crimes, Jewish sources in the Soviet Union reported today. The last time a Jew was sentenced to death in Russia was five years ago. That sentence was subsequently commuted.
According to the sources, Leviev, a native of Bukhara, applied for exit visas for himself and his family in 1971, resigned from his job and handed the store over to a new manager. He received the usual certificate of discharge stating that he had completed his job in a satisfactory manner.
However, in 1972, shortly after he and his family received exit visas, Leviev was arrested. His wife’s parents left for Israel but his wife and children stayed behind. He was kept in prison for two years before he was brought to trial in Moscow City Court on Dec. 8 with a group of other defendants accused of economic crimes. Leviev is accused of malpractice in his management of the store he had left three years before. Under Soviet law, the charge carries the maximum penalty of death which was imposed on Leviev and several others, the sources reported.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
