MOSCOW, December 1 (RIA Novosti) - The Moscow City Court will begin trying defendants for the murder of Paul Klebnikov, editor of the Forbes magazine in Russia, behind closed doors on December 6, the lawyer of a defendant said Thursday.

Lema Umarov said: "Preliminary hearings have been scheduled for next Tuesday."

Umarov said the defendants had asked for a jury trial.

Klebnikov, 41, was gunned down in Moscow in one of the highest-profile murders in Russia. Shortly before his death, Forbes published a list of Russia's wealthiest people.