The trial of Igor Velchev for the murder of NTV journalist Ilya Zimin did not begin as scheduled in Ocnita, Moldova, because the four NTV employees who discovered Zimin’s body in his Moscow apartment were not in court. The trial was postponed until October 2. It was the third postponement for the same reason.
The Moldovan prosecutor’s office said the NTV journalists were notified by mail that they should attend the trial, but they claim they did not get any letter, acording to Reporters sans Frontières (RSF). The court could decide to ask them to respond to questions in writing, or statements could be taken from them in Moscow. But Velchev’s defence lawyer, Victor Chilat, said he would insist that they come to Moldova to testify in person.
The trial of Velchev for the murder of NTV reporter and presenter Ilya Zimin was to begin on August 15 in Ocnita. A Moldovan aged 23, Velchev is accused of fatally injuring Zimin, 33, in a fight in Zimin’s Moscow apartment in the early hours of February 26, 2006 after meeting him earlier in the evening. He is pleading not guilty, and faces 20 to 25 years in prison if convicted.
“We hope that this trial will enable Zimin’s family and colleagues to discover the exact circumstances of his death,” RSF said.
Following Velchev’s identification as the suspect in Zimin’s murder, NTV announced a reward for any information leading to his arrest. After being sought by the police for several months, he was finally arrested on the night of June 23, 2006 in Kagul, in southern Moldova.
The trial had been scheduled to start a month ago, but was postponed because of the absence of any representative of Zimin’s family.
Velchev is being tried in Moldova under a 1993 accord between members of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) for suspects to be prosecuted in their country of origin. Russia’s requests for his extradition were unsuccessful as article 13 of Moldova’s criminal code forbids the extradition of Moldovan citizens accused of crimes abroad.
Velchev’s lawyer, Victor Chilat, says Moldova’s courts are competent and his client will get a fair trial. He has so far refused to say anything about what happened in Zimin’s apartment the night he died.
