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Platon Lebedev's lawyers file appeal to Supreme court

Earlier, lawyers for ex-Yukos Chief Mikhail Khodorkovsky had filed a similar appeal

Photo ITAR-TASS

Photo ITAR-TASS

MOSCOW, June 14 (Itar-Tass) — Lawyers for ex- MENATEP chief Platon Lebedev have filed a supervisory appeal addressed to Chairman of the Russian Supreme Court Vyacheslav Lebedev.

"The appeal filed in the name of the Supreme court chairman is based on an unquestionable fact that Supreme court judge Mr. Voronov, who turned down a supervisory appeal sent to the Supreme Court judicial panel for criminal cases, failed to overrule any of the lawyers' arguments; Voronov skipped his professional duties, substituting an inquiry into the lawyers' arguments by a mere rendering of clauses of the verdict, passed by the Khamovniki court, which is being challenged," said lawyer for Platon Lebedev Alexei Miroshnichenko.

"If the Supreme Court chairman sees the obvious fact which lies on the surface and recognizes it the only logical reaction will be to revoke the resolution passed by judge Voronov and institute supervisory court proceedings, " Miroshnichenko said. Any other decision might be proof of the existence of certain underhand motives, the lawyer said. The defense is confident that Vyacheslav Lebedev's resolution will be a milestone which significance might go far beyond the framework of this concrete case, Miroshnichenko said.

Platon Lebedev reserves the right to file a supevisory appeal on his own behalf addressed to the Supreme Court chairman.

Earlier, lawyers for ex-Yukos Chief Mikhail Khodorkovsky had filed a similar appeal.

On December 30, 2010 the Khamovniki Moscow District court sentenced Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Platon Lebedev to a 14-year-prison term on charges of illegal appropriation of oil and money laundering. After the lawyers appealed the verdict the Moscow City Court shortened the prison term for both by one year. Taking into account the previous verdict passed to Khodorkovsky and Lebedev in 2005 their overall prison term expires in 2016.

On May 15 , 2012 a judge of a Supervisory Panel of the Russian Supreme Court turned down the lawyers' appeal against the second verdict passed to Lebedev and Khodorkovsky.

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