Moscow Court Announces Verdict In Case Involving Total CEO Plane Crash In Vnukovo Airport

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 24th July, 2020) The Solntsevsky court of Moscow on Thursday ruled guilty and issued prison sentences to the defendants in the case of plane crash that killed Christophe de Margerie, the former CEO of French oil and gas company Total, a Sputnik correspondent reported from the courtroom.

The defendants were employees of Moscow's Vnukovo airport, where the plane crashed after colliding with a snow cutter, including flight director Roman Dunaev and traffic controllers Alexander Kruglov and Nadezhda Arkhipova. They have denied responsibility for the incident.

"Dunaev, Kruglov, Arkhipova violated the rules for the safety of a vehicle, which inadvertently resulted in the infliction of large damage and death of two or more persons," judge Ekaterina Grishina said when announcing the verdict.

It is expected that today the court will announce the operative part of the decision, which includes the punishment.

During the debate, the prosecutor asked the court to sentence Dunaev to 6 years 2 months in prison, Kruglov to 6 years, Arkhipova to 5 years 10 months. This case has been heard since October 2018 and took almost 80 court sessions.

"The court sentences Dunaev to six years in an open prison, Kruglov to five years and six months in an open prison and Arkhipova to five years in an open prison," the judge said in the verdict announcement.

Because the crime was committed due inadvertently and in a time period qualifying for amnesty marking the 70th anniversary of victory in the Great Patriotic War � the part of the Second World War from 1941-1945, when Russia and other then-Soviet countries joined the allied fight against Nazi Germany � Arkhipova's sentence was waived.

"In light of the amnesty for the 70th anniversary of victory in the Great Patriotic War, [the court rules] to waive Arkhipova's liability and clear her of charge," the judge added.

The other two defendants were ordered to not leave the country until the verdict takes effect.

In July 2017, the same court sentenced snow cutter driver Vladimir Martynenko to four years in prison and senior shift engineer Vladimir Ledenev to 3.5 years. Both of them were subsequently released under the 70th victory anniversary amnesty.

The prosecution were accusing Arkhipova of negligence over not monitoring the movement of special equipment on the airfield and Kruglov of allowing an intern dispatcher to give the plane's a go-ahead to take off while the snow cutter was still on the runway.

Dunaev, in turn, was accused of "inaction" in monitoring the dispatchers' work. All employees had access to radars and other equipment they could use to see if the runway was set for a takeoff, the prosecution claimed.

The intern dispatcher was also charged initially, but the prosecution later dropped the charges.