U.S. imposes sanctions on more Russians under Magnitsky Act

WASHINGTON, Dec. 20 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Treasury on Wednesday imposed new sanctions on more Russians under a law enacted five years ago following the death of Russian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky.

The Treasury added five individuals, including Russia's Chechnyan leader Ramzan Kadyrov, to its sanctions list.

The sanctions would freeze assets of blacklisted persons under U.S. jurisdiction and ban any U.S. individuals or companies from making business deals with them.

The penalty came as the U.S. State Department presented to Congress its annual report on the administration's implementation of the so-called Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act.

So far, a total of 49 individuals have been designated by the U.S. government under the act.

Washington described Magnitsky as a man who uncovered large-scale corruptions among Russian officials. Magnitsky was arrested in November 2008 for alleged tax fraud and died in prison a year later.

The United States claimed Magnitsky died because of medical neglect. But Russia said no evidence pointed to his death being caused deliberately.

Former U.S. President Barack Obama signed the Magnitsky Act in December 2012, imposing sanctions on Russian officials allegedly responsible for the 37-year-old lawyer's death.

Russia retaliated by passing the Anti-Magnitsky Act in January 2013, barring U.S. citizens from adopting Russian orphans and banning Americans suspected of human rights violations from entering Russia. Enditem