All news

Court allows physicist Valentin Danilov, who was convicted of spying for China to move to Novosibirsk

In 2001, he was arrested by the FSB on suspicion of divulging state secrets

KRASNOYARSK, November 23 (Itar-Tass) — Physicist Valentin Danilov, who was convicted of spying for China has been given permission to move to Novosibirsk, the Krasnoyarsk Regional Court told Itar-Tass on Friday.

On Saturday, Danilov will leave the penal colony Nor 17 in the Industrialny settlement of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, as on November 13 the Sovetsky District Court of Krasnoyarsk granted parole to him.

The former head of the Thermo-Physics Centre at Krasnoyarsk State Technical University (KTSU), Professor Valentin Danilov, was charged with making a stand for modelling the impact of cosmic space on artificial Earth satellites at the request of the Chinese side. In 1999, on behalf of Krasnoyarsk State Technical University he signed a contract with the China Precision Machinery Import-Export Corporation (CPMIEC) on the manufacture of the test unit and development of software for it.

Despite the fact that Danilov’s inventions had been declassified eight years before the trial, the regional FSB department accused the physicist of spying for China, and the university accused Danilov of alleged misappropriation of 466 thousand roubles. The investigation stated later that in the period from 1999 to 2000 Danilov fraudulently stole the state funds earmarked for the contract.

In 2001, he was arrested by the FSB on suspicion of divulging state secrets. He was released on bail on October 2, 2002. He was acquitted by a jury of all charges on December 29, 2003. However, on June 9, 2004 — the Supreme Court of Russia overturned Danilov’s acquittal of espionage. On November 2004, another jury convicted Danilov of espionage. He was subsequently sentenced to 14 years in jail for treason. According to human rights organisations, his sentence was unjustified, because Danilov provided documents to the court showing that all the “secret information” has been in fact declassified.

To date, the scientist has served two-thirds of his term, and in accordance with the legislation in effect he is eligible to apply for parole.