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Court denies request for new medical examination of "Belgorod shooter"

The court adjourned until August 12, to give time to the parties to prepare their arguments

Photo ITAR-TASS/Zurab Dzhavakhadze

Photo ITAR-TASS/Zurab Dzhavakhadze

BELGOROD, August 6 (Itar-Tass) - The Belgorod region court on Tuesday denied the request for a new psychiatric examination of the "Belgorod Shooter" Sergei Pomazun, accused of killing six people earlier this year.

Pomazun's lawyer who presented the petition at a hearing earlier in the day, said he even knew the term for his client's mental disorder. But Judge Nikolai Kudinov supported the prosecutor who had said the previous psychiatric expert examination was enough.

The injured parties - the relatives of the persons killed by Pomazun - also objected to the new psychiatric test.

The court adjourned until August 12, to give time to the parties to prepare their arguments.

Investigative Committee /SK/ spokesman Vladimir Markin earlier said the psychiatric expert examination had found Pomazun sane.

The SK said Pomazun had gone on a shooting rampage for "hooligan motives."

At around 11:00, on April 22, Pomazun opened a safe in his house to retrieve his father's Vepr-308 hunting rifle and at least 144 rounds of ammunition. On the same day, he drove to the hunting equipment shop in Narodny Bulvar /Parkway/ in Belgorod at 14:20, Moscow time, entered it and killed two shop assistants and a visitor. He then stole two self-loading hunting rifles Tigr and more than 250 rounds of ammunition.

As he was leaving the shop, Pomazun shot at passers-by, killing a man and an underage girl. Another girl died in hospital later in the day.

Pomazun was detained near the Belgorod railway station in the evening of the following day. He stabbed the police officer who was detaining him at least four times.

He was charged with murder of two or more persons for hooligan motives, concealing crimes, illegal turnover of weapons, theft of weapons and ammunition, an attempted murder of law-enforcement officer. Pomazun is facing life imprisonment.

The suspect was released from prison in December 2012 after serving a four-year sentence for theft.

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