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Count grants bail to Canadian citizen arrested for protest at Arctic drilling rig

ST. PETERSBURG, November 19, 20:25 /ITAR-TASS/. St Petersburg’s Primorsky district court on Tuesday ruled to let out on bail of 2 million roubles Canadian citizen Paul Ruzycki, chief mate of the captain of the Greenpeace ship Arctic Runrise, who was arrested for Greenpeace protest at the Prirazlomnaya oil drilling rig, Itar-Tass reports from the court room.

When the investigators’ petition to extend the arrest was considered the other day, Ruzycki’s defence stated that the Greenpeace was ready to bail him out for up to 2 million roubles. The prosecutor supported the lawyers’ request for the activists’ release pending trial, saying there were enough grounds for that.

The Canadian will be released when the money arrives.

St Petersburg’s Kalininsky and Primorsky district courts have released on bail Russian photographer Denis Sinyakov arrested alongside Greenpeace activists; Russian citizen Yekaterina Zaspa, who acted as a doctor on board the Arctic Sunrise, staffer of the Greenpeace press service Andrei Allakhverdov, Ana Paula Alminhana Maciel of Brazil, New Zealander David John Houssmann, Argentinian Miguel Hernan Perez, and Polish citizen Tomasz Dziemianchuk. The Primorsky district court, however, ruled on Monday that Colin Russel of Australia should remain in custody for another three months, till February 24.

The Greenpeace icebreaker Arctic Sunrise approached on September 18 the Priparlomnaya oil drilling rig conducting drilling operations on the shelf. Activists on board the ship attempted to scale the platform but their actions were checked by border guards. The vessel was then towed to the port of Murmansk.