Former Deputy Mayor of Novocherkassk Zhuravlyov made no nationalist statements, defence witnesses assert

On June 20, the Novocherkassk City Court proceeded, at its session on the criminal case against the former Deputy Mayor of Novocherkassk Vladislav Zhuravlyov, to questioning defence witnesses. All of them denied the presence of nationalist appeals in the speech of the defendant.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that, according to investigators, June 16, 2010, the former Deputy Mayor of Novocherkassk made negative remarks about the national Diasporas of the Rostov Region at a rally of Cossack in the village of Srednyaya. He was accused of inciting interethnic hatred while taking an official post. A number of experts agree that the case has political character. The former deputy mayor says that he never made such statements.

Yuri Trukhmanov, a Cossack from Srednyaya, who was at the rally on June 16, 2010, was the first to speak at the court session on June 20, the defendant Vladislav Zhuravlyov himself told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent. Then, according to his story, another Cossack Yuri Butin reported that, in reality, no minutes of the rally were put down.

Leonid Novikov, the defendant's advocate, moved a motion asking to summon more defence witnesses, including new ones, who do not figure the case files.

The next court session is scheduled for June 25.