Journalist Roman Popkov questioned at the trial on Politkovskaya's murder case

On February 25, at the Moscow City Court (MCC), at the trial of the murder case of Anna Politkovskaya, an observer of the "Novaya Gazeta", prosecutors continued presenting to the court the evidence against the defendants, despite the fact that one of the defence lawyers demanded to postpone the trial. The advocate Murad Musaev said that his client Djabrail Makhmudov was sick; however, Makhmudov refused from calling an ambulance. The state prosecution questioned the journalist Roman Popkov in the presence of the jury.

He said that from 2006 to 2008 he was in the "Butyrskaya" Prison; and Oleg Golubovich (a witness for the prosecution at this trial) was placed into his cell and spent several months with him. According to Popkov, in 2010, he met Golubovich outside the prison.

"He asked me on the phone for an urgent meeting; it was closer to the spring of that year. He was very excited and said that he had a lot of information about the murder of Politkovskaya. He knew that I was a journalist; and he asked me about any "approaches" to the "Novaya Gazeta". "He said that he feared for his life and threats from a group of killers," Popkov told the court.

Popkov has recollected that Golubovich mentioned Khadjikurbanov, but "did not reveal any episodes; he was only saying that he had information about the weapons and about the crime, but without specific details."