Criminal charges were dropped Wednesday against prominent lawyer Murad Musayev, who had been accused of bribing witnesses and interfering with court proceedings in a 2013 trial, the Interfax news agency reported.
The court said charges against Musayev — known for defending the men convicted of the 2006 murder of journalist Anna Politkovskaya — were being dropped because the statute of limitations on his case had expired.
The court did not dismiss, however, the legal proceedings against two jurors also involved in the case, according to Interfax.
Investigators had accused Musayev of bribing two witnesses in Jan. 2013 in the case against Yusup Temerkhanov, who was later sentenced to 15 years in prison for the murder of former Russian army colonel Yury Budanov. Budanov, who was gunned down in Moscow in 2011, had been sentenced to prison for the kidnap, rape and murder of an 18-year-old Chechen woman during the Second Chechen War.
Musayev had pleaded not guilty to the charges laid against him, saying that they represented an attempt to remove him from the high-profile cases in which he was involved.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.
