On Feb. 14, Moscow’s city court heard the appeal of defense attorney Mark Feygin about the continuing pretrial arrest of Ukrainian journalist Roman Sushchenko, an employee of Ukraine’s national news agency Ukrinform, who was illegally detained in Russia.
“Today at 10.20 in hall No. 327 of the Moscow city court a hearing of my appeal for continuing the arrest of Sushchenko until April 30, 2017 will take place. I will again make arguments in open court proceedings,” Feygin said on his Facebook page on Feb. 13.
Russian media says Feygin seeks to overturn the detention order of his client and will seek house arrest for Suchchenko, instead of pretrial confinement.
As earlier reported, Moscow’s Lefortovsky court on Jan. 25 ruled that Sushchenko remain in pretrial confinement for three months, until April 30.
Sushchenko is charged with espionage (article 276 of the criminal code), which he denies. According to Feygin, his client is accused of several counts of espionage.
Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) detained Sushchenko “while conducting espionage” in Moscow, the FSB announced on Oct. 3 last year.
According to Russian intelligence agencies, Sushchenko is a career officer of the Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine’s Defense Ministry with the rank of Colonel.
Feygin has said Sushchenko lived in France for six years, where he worked as a correspondent for Ukrinform in Paris.
