A HUMAN rights lawyer who fought against the early release of a Russian colonel convicted of murdering a Chechen woman was shot dead on a Moscow street yesterday, days after the officer left prison, law enforcement authorities said.

A lawyer who opposed the early release of a Russian colonel convicted of killing a Chechen woman was shot dead after a press conference in central Moscow today.

A Russian colonel was jailed for 10 years today for kidnapping and murdering a Chechen woman.