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Russia's Supreme Court upholds acquittal in Tajik girl attack

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MOSCOW, August 10 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's Supreme Court reject an appeal from prosecutors and the parents of a nine-year-old Tajik girl killed in 2004 against the acquittal of a teenaged defendant charged with the attack.

Khursheda Sultonova died of stab wounds in St. Petersburg in February 2004 after being attacked along with her father and 11-year-old cousin by a group of young men. Her parents appealed a jury decision clearing the main defendant of murder on March 30. He was convicted of robbery and hooliganism. The St. Petersburg court sentenced seven defendants - six others were found guilty of hooliganism and another was cleared of all charges - to between one and a half to five and a half years in prison.

"The court ruled to uphold the St. Petersburg City court's decision and reject the appeals of prosecutors and attorneys," the judge in Moscow said.

The Supreme Court only pronounced its ruling without making public the argumentation.

However, the prosecutor protested citing a number of violations during the process. "The defense attorneys constantly heckled defendants and witnesses in their testimony to guide them," she said, adding that the lawyers also claimed that investigators had exerted pressure upon the defendants and the parties were prohibited from informing the jury of how evidence had been procured.

She said one of the jury members had committed three administrative offenses, including two during the investigation. "All these facts affected the jury's decision," the prosecutor said.

Defense attorneys also asked the Supreme Court for a re-trial, saying that the verdict was based on controversial points and two defendants had not been involved in the crime as they had alibis.

"We are not satisfied with the court's decision and are ready to contest it even in the European Court of Human Rights," attorney Alexei Akhmitshin said.

A lawyer representing the victim's family, Natella Ponomaryova, said earlier the jury had decided the real murderers were still at large. An investigation into the attack established that 11 people had taken part in the brutal attack, which is widely seen as one of the worst racially motivated crimes in Russia in recent years.

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