In Geriev's absence, court questions witnesses and starts debates

The Supreme Court of the Chechen Republic, which is considering the complaint lodged against the sentence passed to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent Zhalaudi Geriev, has questioned two defence witnesses, one of whom stated violations during the investigation.

On September 5, the Shali District Court of Chechnya sentenced Geriev to three years in colony on charges of possessing marijuana.

Today, one of the witnesses told the court that procedural violations had been committed in the course of the investigation. The session was held in the defendant's absence.

During the debates, the advocate of Geriev has stated that the charges against his client were fabricated and treated the investigators' position as unjustified. At making the judgement, the court has failed to take into account the facts, confirming Geriev's innocence, the advocate has stressed.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.