MOSCOW, October 17 (RIA Novosti) - Moscow's Basmanny Court has extended custody for Dzhabrail Makhmudov, suspected of murdering investigative journalist Anna Politkovskaya, until January 7.
Earlier in the day, the Moscow City Court turned down an appeal from Makhmudov's lawyers, who alleged that their client's arrest was illegal.
Makhmudov, 25, who was taken into custody on August 17, has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
"I consider the crime particularly abhorrent - a crime against a woman and a journalist who risked her life protecting human rights in my motherland," the defendant told the court.
However, prosecutor Vyacheslav Smirnov asked the court to leave its verdict intact. He said the defendant had neither a job, nor residency registration in Moscow, a legal requirement for any extended stay by non-Muscovites in Russian capital.
Protesting against Makhmudov's arrest, defense lawyer Murad Musayev cited several procedural violations, and insisted that his client held two university degrees, had lived in Moscow for a long time, and "has never been prosecuted."
The prosecutor said that nine people were currently facing charges in connection with Politkovskaya's murder, including Makhmudov's two brothers.
Politkovskaya, who gained international recognition for her strong criticism of the Kremlin and claims of state-backed atrocities against civilians in Chechnya, was gunned down in the entryway of her Moscow apartment building in October 2006.
The latest reports said charges had also been brought against Lieutenant Colonel Pavel Ryaguzov, from the Moscow department of the Federal Security Service.
"Ryaguzov is accused of passing on details of Politkovskaya's address" to another suspect, Shamil Burayev, who used to head a Chechen district, a source close to the investigation said.
Ryaguzov, who was initially arrested on August 21, is also facing charges of abuse of office, abduction and illegal entry - offenses that he allegedly committed in 2002.
All suspects in the case have pleaded not guilty.
