Moscow ( CNN ) -- Three men were convicted and sentenced Tuesday in Russia for masterminding and carrying out an acid attack on the Bolshoi Ballet 's artistic director , Sergei Filin . Star dancer Pavel Dmitrichenko was given six years in prison for masterminding the attack , while accomplice Yuri Zarutsky was sentenced to 10 years and driver Andrei Lipatov got four years , a reporter for the official Russian Legal Information Agency ( RAPSI ) who was in court told CNN . Prosecutors at the Moscow court had asked for Dmitrichenko to be given nine years in prison , RAPSI reported earlier . Filin was walking to his Moscow apartment in January when a masked assailant tossed sulfuric acid onto his face , leaving him severely burned and nearly blinded . He has spent much of the past year in Germany , where doctors have been working to save his sight . Curtain falls on Russian ballet director after tumultuous year . The case , which has been closely watched in Russia and elsewhere , has exposed the tensions and intrigues simmering below the surface at the world-renowned ballet company . Dmitrichenko argued during his trial that he had wanted Filin to be punished in some way for failing to give him the roles he wanted ; for example , by being beaten up . But , the dancer said , he did not expect Filin to be subjected to an acid attack . The power struggle tearing apart the Bolshoi . In his evidence , Zarutsky told the court that the acid attack was his own idea and that he had not told Dmitrichenko about it . Many fellow Bolshoi dancers signed a letter asking the judge for leniency for Dmitrichenko . In his summary , the judge said that in his view , the attack was organized by Dmitrichenko . Bolshoi Ballet star denies masterminding acid attack .
NEW : Dancer Pavel Dmitrichenko is given a six - year prison term for causing the attack . Accomplice Yuri Levin and driver Vladimir Lipatov are also convicted . The acid attack almost blinded the Bolshoi Ballet 's artistic director , Sergei Filin . The case has exposed rivalries and corruption at the world - renowned ballet company .