VLADIVOSTOK, March 12. /TASS/. The defense lawyer of American military officer Gordon Black, who was convicted in the Primorsky Region, has filed a cassation appeal against the verdict, the region's united court press service said.
"The defense attorney of Gordon Black, lawyer I.V. Kirichenko, has filed a cassation appeal. He requests that the court's sentence and appeal ruling be altered, seeking an acquittal for his client under Part 1 of Article 119 of the Russian Criminal Code. Additionally, he asks for the charges under paragraph ‘c’ of Part 2 of Article 158 to be reclassified to Part 1 of Article 158. Kirichenko also requests a reduction in the appointed punishment based on mitigating circumstances," the message reads.
The statement notes that the criminal case against Gordon Black has been forwarded to the Ninth General Jurisdiction Court of Cassation.
On June 19, a court in the Pervomaisky district of Vladivostok found US citizen Gordon Black guilty of crimes under Part 1 of Article 119 of the Criminal Code (threat of murder, if there were grounds to fear that the threat would be carried out) and paragraph "c" of Part 2 of Article 158 of the Criminal Code (theft resulting in significant damage to a citizen). He was sentenced to three years and nine months in prison to be served in a general regime colony. Black’s defense filed an appeal against the sentence, but the Primorsky regional court dismissed it on August 19.
The regional Interior Ministry office previously reported that US sergeant Black had served in South Korea. After his service ended, he went to Vladivostok to visit a Russian woman with whom he allegedly had a romantic relationship. Later, the couple had a quarrel, after which the woman filed a police report accusing him of theft in the Primorsky Region.