Lapin trial once again postponedTimur Aliyev, North Caucasus – The court trial of Sergei Lapin, a member of the special OMON police force accused of murdering a Chechen resident, has been postponed until November 23. This was decided at a hearing held in the Oktyabrsky District Court in Grozny on November 17.
Grigory Degtyarev, the lawyer representing the accused, requested the postponement saying that he did not have enough time to familiarize himself with all the facts of the case. “We only signed the agreement to defend Lapin on November 14,” he told the court.
This was the third petition presented to the court requesting the hearing be postponed. The first time the lawyer stated that his client’s passport was incorrect (the month of his birth had been mixed up), and the second time he insisted the court in Nizhnevartovsk had already acquitted Lapin; both pleadings, however, were denied by Judge Mayrbek Mezhidov.
Khanty-Mansiysky OMON policeman Sergei Lapin is facing charges on several counts, namely assaulting Zelimkhan Murdalov with intent to grievous bodily harm; acting beyond his military authority; forging documents; and threatening harm to journalist Anna Politkovskaya, who described the case in one of her articles.
Lapin’s case has been ongoing for two years now. He never told the investigators what he did to Zelimkhan after dragging him out of his cell and interrogating him in front of several witnesses. Moreover, Lapin failed to appear in court on several occasions, clearly intending to prolong the case.
The November 17 session was the sixth hearing, and the first at which he appeared with his lawyer.
Nataliya Estemirova of the Russian human rights organization Memorial believes that this case should be heard at the start of the court session. “This case is unique because it is the first one dealing with military crimes committed in Chechnya that is taking place in the republic itself,” she said. (U/E,T)
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