ROME, July 11. /TASS/. Gavino Raoul Piras, one of the two Italians suspected of alleged espionage for Russia, has denied transferring any classified documents, his lawyer, Francesco Vaccaro, told TASS.
According to him, the defendant in the case volunteered to answer investigators’ questions. "My client wished to be interrogated to make his position clear. He denied transferring any classified or confidential documents or information," the lawyer noted. He added that the defense had not yet filed a motion to lift the restrictive measure against Piras who is currently under house arrest.
On July 7, La Repubblica reported that two former special services agents had been detained in Rome on charges of allegedly passing classified information related to national security issues to Russia. Police said in an official statement that "five more individuals are under investigation on various charges." Among other offenses, they are suspected of "political and military espionage," "disclosing state secrets," and "disclosing information the dissemination of which is prohibited."
Later, Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani announced the expulsion of two military attaches from the Russian Embassy in Rome following the detention of two suspects in alleged espionage. Russia will respond to this move, the Russian Foreign Ministry told TASS.