A Russian court on Friday sentenced former economy minister Alexei Ulyukayev to eight years in a penal colony after convicting him for taking a bribe from an ally of President Vladimir Putin.

Ulyukayev, the highest-ranking official arrested in Putin's 17 years in power, must also pay a fine of 130 million roubles ($2.2 million), judge Larisa Semyonova said.

source: AFP