Russia - Charges for Opposition Leader in Plotting Riots - NYTimes.com Russian investigators on Friday filed charges against a leftist activist, making him the most prominent opposition figure to face prison under an increasingly severe Kremlin crackdown on the protest movement against the government of Vladimir V. Putin. The activist, Sergei Udaltsov, a leader of the Left Front, was charged with plotting riots, a charge that carries a maximum sentence of 10 years, said Vladimir Markin, a spokesman for Russia's top federal investigator. Mr. Udaltsov was released on the condition he not leave Moscow. A documentary-style program broadcast this month by a Kremlin-friendly TV channel contended that Mr. Udaltsov and associates had met with a Georgian lawmaker to raise money for organizing riots in cities.