Pavlyuchenkov: fee for shadowing Politkovskaya was 150,000 US dollars

The details of how surveillance of Anna Politkovskaya was organized were disclosed at the today's court session by Dmitry Pavlyuchenkov, who had been earlier convicted for Politkovskaya's murder. However, Murad Musaev, the advocate for the suffered party, believes that Pavlyuchenkov has voiced out not the whole information known to him.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that by concluding a deal with the investigation, Pavlyuchenkov gave evidence against his accomplices in the crime; his case was heard by a special procedure. The ex- police officer was found guilty and sentenced to 11 years in prison.

According to Pavlyuchenkov, in June 2006 Gaitukaev called him and asked him to shadow a woman, without explaining the aim of surveillance. Gaitukaev paid for the work by passing over to Pavlyuchenkov a package with 150,000 dollars.

He added that in late September, Pavel Ryaguzov, an agent of the Russian FSB (Federal Security Bureau), also asked Pavlyuchenkov to shadow the journalist of the "Novaya Gazeta".

Anna Stavitskaya, another representative of the victims, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that the today's Pavlyuchenkov's evidence fully corresponds to the testimony he gave during the preliminary investigation.

However, the advocate Murad Musaev believes that "the above 150,000 US dollars were paid to Pavlyuchenkov not for shadowing but for the murder of Anna Politkovskaya." According to his story, "no shadowing is so expensive"; and Pavlyuchenkov knows much more than he says.