Demerchyan's defence complains against verdict of Sochi court

Alexander Boichenko, an advocate of the builder Mardiros Demerchyan has filed an appeal complaint against the verdict of the Adler District Court, which found his client guilty of false denunciation.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Demerchyan, a builder of the facilities of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, was accused of false denunciation of policemen. The defendant refused to plead guilty. On December 17, the Adler District Court of Sochi handed down a guilty verdict by appointing a punishment in the form of compulsory public works Demerchyan.

Alexander Boichenko filed the complaint on December 25. In the interests of his client, he asked the above court to cancel the verdict and return the case to the prosecutor for elimination of drawbacks.

The second complaint is being drafted; and it will be submitted after studying the protocols and filing comments on them, said Alexander Popkov, another Demerchyan's advocate. "Protocols are the proofs in the case; and if they are distorted, there's no reason to expect a fair trial by the higher instance. Therefore, I intend to study the protocols and to attach audio records of the sessions, should the judge and secretary disagree," Alexander Popkov told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.