Defense lawyers said Thursday they would submit to a Moscow court contracts signed by Russia's state arms export monopoly as proof that US businessman Edmund Pope is innocent of stealing defense secrets.
The documents would prove Pope had acted openly and in good faith and with the full knowledge of Russian scientific and military establishments, lawyer Pavel Astakhov said.
"We are going to ask that protocols and contracts officially agreed by Mr. Pope with Russian institutions, including Rosvooruzheniye (the state arms exporter) be added to the case file," Astakhov said.
"The legality of his activities is confirmed by these documents which were absolutely openly signed after negotiations with Russian institutions," the lawyer said before the trial resumed.
Former naval intelligence officer Pope was arrested by agents from the FSB domestic intelligence service (ex-KGB) in April and charged with stealing secret designs of Russia's Shkval torpedo.
The 54-year-old faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted -- MOSCOW (AFP)
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