The defense of Russian Anastasia Diatlova, a defendant in a high-profile illegal technology export case in the United States, will appeal Houston court’s ruling to remand her in custody, defense lawyer Alexei Tarasov said.
“Of course we are convinced that the ruling was wrongful. We will file an appeal,” Tarasov told RIA Novosti. “We believe her personal participation in this, as prosecutors say, ‘criminal scheme’ was extremely limited, and such measure of restraint is irrelevant.”
The court ruled on Tuesday that Diatlova should remain in jail pending trial. A similar ruling was made regarding another suspect in the case, Russian Alexander Posobilov, on Friday.
Eight members of an alleged secret Russian military procurement network were arrested last week in Houston. They include four Russian nationals: Alexander Fishenko, Posobilov, Viktoria Klebanova and Diatlova. Three suspects are still at large and believed to be outside the United States.
The FBI in New York said a week ago that 11 suspects had been charged with illegally exporting military technology to Russia, namely microelectronic components destined for Russia’s intelligence and military agencies.
The main suspect, described as an “agent of the Russian government,” was named as 46 year-old Fishenko, who heads an American company called Arc Electronics, and a Moscow-registered company called Apex System.
The four accused Russians deny any wrongdoing, Tarasov earlier told RIA Novosti.
Hearings on whether to keep in custody Fishenko and Klebanova will be held on Wednesday.
Russia’s General Consul in Houston Alexander Zakharov said he was disappointed with the court ruling. The court on Tuesday denied bail to Diatlova on the grounds that she does not have enough assets in the United States and that she also has a Russian passport, and her parents live in Russia.
Friday’s ruling to deny bail to Posobilov was also due to his Russian citizenship, Russia’s vice consul in Houston Stanislav Abramov said last week.