Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's friend testifies against him in court

Stephen Silva, a friend of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, accused of the organization of the terror act during the Boston Marathon, has testified against his friend in exchange for a reduced sentence to himself. The witness has confirmed that he gave Tsarnaev his pistol.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that 21-year-old American Stephen Silva, a Tsarnaev's friend and classmate, was arrested in July 2014 on charges of drug possession and illegal possession of weapons. According to investigators, Tsarnaev brothers used a Ruger P95 pistol belonging to Stephen Silva to shot and killed a policeman in Boston. In December, Stephen Silva pleaded guilty to possession of drugs and weapons, and on March 17, the court was to announce the verdict against him.

However, Stephen Silva has concluded an agreement with prosecutors to ease his sentence for at least five years in exchange for truthful testimony in the Tsarnaev's case, the "Boston Herald" reports.

Stephen Silva said he believed Tsarnaev to be his best friend. When in high school, they were discussing the topic about whether terrorism would be justified one day, and Dzhokhar complained that the US foreign policy was focused on the persecution of Muslims, "The Boston Globe" quotes Stephen Silva as saying.

Besides, Stephen Silva has also confirmed that he really gave Tsarnaev a pistol. In February 2013, the latter asked for the pistol to "frighten" someone. Tsarnaev never returned the pistol, coming up with excuses, the RIA "Novosti" reports.

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