Simonovsky Court of Moscow has prolonged the term of custody for the former vice-president of YUKOS Vasily Aleksanyan. The question of prolongation was raised exceptionally at the court’s initiative, without any application made from the prosecution side.   

At the time being, Aleksanyan is receiving treatment in Hospital #60 and he is still kept in the custody. His lawyer, Gevorg Dangyan said to a Novaya Gazeta correspondent that last prolongation of the detention was done till 2 March 2008, and on 6 February the court proceedings were suspended due to grave disease by the accused and further passing him to the hospital. The defense believes that after 2 March 2008 Vasily Aleksanyan was kept in the custody without relevant court’s decision.    

The public prosecutor Nikolai Vlasov stated that Aleksanyan might escape from investigation and he also stated that the circumstances under which the restraint was chosen have not changed. However, the lawyers reminded to the prosecutor that the “circumstances” have changed dramatically as a number of grave diseases were found with Aleksanyan and the doctors consider his condition to be poor. A course of chemotherapy was started on 1 July and the general treatment is to take rather long, which is known not only to the court but also to the Prosecutor General’s office. “It would be suicidal trying to escape from doctors, infusions, drugs and treatment” stated the lawyers.       

But that was not the argument to be bought by the judge Korneeva.

P.S. At the beginning of July the case of the former vice-president of YUKOS was recognized to be a priority in the European Court for Human Rights in Strasburg.