Prosecutor asks for jail time for Russian soccer stars accused of violence - RIA

Russian soccer players Pavel Mamayev (R), Alexander Kokorin (2nd L), his brother Kirill Kokorin (2nd R) and acquaintance Alexander Protasovitsky, who are charged with a brutal assault and held in custody, are escorted before a court hearing in Moscow, Russia May 6, 2019. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina

MOSCOW (Reuters) - A Russian prosecutor on Monday asked a court to hand jail sentences to two famous Russian soccer players accused of taking part in violent attacks in Moscow, the RIA news agency reported.

Some critics of the Kremlin say it is using the case of Alexander Kokorin and Pavel Mamayev to deflect attention from bigger problems, an allegation it has ignored.

RIA said a prosecutor had asked the court to jail Kokorin for one year and six months and Mamayev for one year and 5 months.

Russian soccer players Pavel Mamayev (R), Alexander Kokorin (L) and their acquaintance Alexander Protasovitsky, who are charged with a brutal assault and held in custody, are seen inside a defendants' cage as they attend a court hearing in Moscow, Russia May 6, 2019. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina

(Reporting by Maria Tsvetkova; Editing by Andrew Osborn)

Russian soccer players Pavel Mamayev (R), Alexander Kokorin (L) and their acquaintance Alexander Protasovitsky, who are charged with a brutal assault and held in custody, are seen inside a defendants' cage as they attend a court hearing in Moscow, Russia May 6, 2019. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina

Russian soccer players Pavel Mamayev and Alexander Kokorin, who were detained last year and accused of carrying out attacks, are escorted after a court hearing in Moscow, Russia April 3, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer