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Police Wrap Up Inquiry of Bolshoi Attack

Bolshoi Theater dancer Pavel Dmitrichenko at a court hearing on Tuesday. Sergei Karpukhin

Police have finished an investigation into the attack on Bolshoi Theater ballet director Sergei Filin, the Interior Ministry said Tuesday.

"The entire investigation into the attack against Filin has been completed as of today," the ministry's press service said in a statement carried by Interfax.

The Bolshoi's lead dancer, Pavel Dmitrichenko, is suspected of masterminding the Jan. 17 attack, when an attacker flung highly corrosive acid into Filin's face outside his home in Moscow.

Filin subsequently underwent several eye surgeries and later went to Germany for further treatment.

On March 7, police arrested Dmitrichenko and Yury Zarutsky, the suspected attacker, and a driver, Andrei Lipatov. They are charged with inflicting serious injuries and face up to 12 years in prison if convicted.

On Tuesday, Moscow's Tagansky District Court extended Dmitrichenko's detention until June 18, turning down his lawyer's request to grant bail of 500,000 rubles, RBC reported.

The court said Dmitrichenko must stay in custody until medical documents on Filin's injuries are received from Germany for forensic evidence in court.

A date for the trial has not been set.

The ministry said Tuesday that a mandatory identification procedure between Filin and Dmitrichenko has not been conducted due to Filin's absence from Russia.

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