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Court to consider issue of trial of Kvachkov's alleged accomplice

Yermakov is under the supervision of doctors in a pre-trial detention centre

YEKATERINBURG, May 21 (Itar-Tass) — Yekaterinburg’s court in June will consider the issue of the referral to mental treatment or criminal prosecution of Alexander Yermakov - another alleged accomplice of former GRU (Main Intelligence Directorate of the RF General Staff) Colonel Vladimir Kvachkov, accused of organising an armed mutiny.

The press service of the Sverdlovsk regional court told Itar-Tass on Monday that Yermakov is under the supervision of doctors in a pre-trial detention centre. Doctors have notes his “unstable mental condition and recommend to send him for treatment.” “In this connection, a court hearing is scheduled for early June at which it will be decided if Yermakov should be sent to a mental hospital or kept in the pre-trial detention facility,” the court’s press service said. The court meeting will be held behind closed doors.

After it the decision will be made on either bringing charges against Yermakov under the RF Criminal Code articles “abetting terrorist activities” and “illegal acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, transportation or carrying of weapons, explosives,” or, given his health condition, to refer him for compulsory treatment to a mental hospital.”

Yermakov’s detention in custody period expired on May 18. The court extended his term of custody until November 1.

According to investigators, Yermakov was a member of the All-Russia Minin and Pozharsky Volunteer Movement, which set the goal to seize state power in Russia in stages. For the first stage, the volunteers supposedly planned to physically eliminate leaders of power structures of the Sverdlovsk Region, assassinate heads of the Jewish diaspora in Yekaterinburg and commit sabotage operations to blast electric transmission lines, power stations of the city and the Sverdlovsk heat and electric power plant. The tasks were united in the plan codenamed Sunrise. Activists of the combat group took topographic, fire and radio contact training.

Earlier, the Sverdlovsk regional court sentenced two members of this movement in the Urals - Sergei Katnikov and Vladimir Ladeishchikov to 6 and 5.5 years of probation. In addition to Ladeishchikov, Katnikov and Yermakov, Colonel Leonid Khabarov was arrested in Yekaterinburg on suspicion of abetting Kvachkov. He is accused of attempting to organise an armed rebellion and involvement in terrorist activities.

Kvachkov was a suspect under two articles of the Criminal Code: Article 279 and Article 30, Part 1 (attempted organisation of armed mutiny) and Article 205, Part 1 (recruiting or involving persons in terrorism).

Kvachkov was also the key suspect in the case over the assassination attempt on the life of chief of RAO UES electric utility Chubais on March 17, 2005. A jury found all the defendants in the assassination attempt case not guilty, in a marathon eight-hour session overnight to August 21, 2010. Kvachkov recently demanded a 50-million-rouble compensation from the Finance Ministry for illegal prosecution.

The investigation of the case of retired GRU Colonel Kvachkov was completed in December last year. The defendant and his lawyers are currently familiarising themselves with the investigation materials that make up may volumes.