RUSSIA: TRIAL OF RUSSIAN DIPLOMAT ANDREY KNYAZEV ACCUSED OF KILLING CANADIAN WOMAN IN DRINK-DRIVING INCIDENT

Record ID: 547994

  • Title: RUSSIA: TRIAL OF RUSSIAN DIPLOMAT ANDREY KNYAZEV ACCUSED OF KILLING CANADIAN WOMAN IN DRINK-DRIVING INCIDENT
  • Date: 13th March 2002
  • Summary: MOSCOW, RUSSIA (MARCH 12, 2002) (REUTERS) MV ACCUSED DIPLOMAT ANDREY KNYAZEV (WEARING LIGHT COLOURED RAINCOAT) WALKING TOWARDS THE COURT BUILDING; SLV ENTRANCE TO COURT BUILDING / GUARDS STANDING (2 SHOTS) MV PHILIP DORE, HUSBAND OF CANADIAN SURVIVOR OF ACCIDENT, CATHERINE DORE, WALKING INTO COURT BUILDING SLV POLICE VEHICLE DRIVES TOWARDS COURT ENTRANCE MV ANDREI KNYAZEV WALKS OUT OF THE COURT BUILDING, GETS IN CAR (2 SHOTS)
  • Embargoed: 28th March 2002 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: MOSCOW, RUSSIA
  • Country: Russia
  • Topics: Crime,Politics,People
  • Reuters ID: LVA1HBWIJHJWY543GO6ZFCXQKSN8
  • Story Text: The trial of a Russian diplomat charged with manslaughter has opened in Moscow.
    Andrey Knyazev stands accused of killing a 50-year-old Canadian woman in an alleged drink-driving incident while he worked as a diplomat at the Russian embassy in Ottawa.
    Andrey Knyazev arrived at court in Moscow on Tuesday (March 12, 2002). He faces a charge of "invoultary manslaughter"
    under the the Russian Criminial Code.
    Knyazev, a mid-level political officer at the Russian embassy in Ottawa, faces the charge of causing the death of 50-year-old Catherine Maclean as he drove his car back after a day of ice-fishing near Ottawa in January 2001.
    His car is said to have hit and killed Maclean and seruiously injured her best friend, 56-year-old Catherine Dore, as the two women were enjoying a pavement stroll in an affluent Ottawa neighbourhood.
    Present at Tuesday's hearing in Moscow were Dore's husband Philip and the Ottawa police officer who investigated the accident. Police at the scene of the accident in Ottawa said Knyazev had refused to take a breathalyser test and had been barely able to walk.
    Knayzev is expected to plead not guilty. His lawyer has hinted the defence will point to the absence of proof that he was driving under the influence of alcohol. If found guilty, Knayzev could receive a maximum of five years in prison.
    The Canadian government had asked Russia to waive diplomatic immunity for Knyazev. Russia refused promising instead to prosecute Knyazev in Moscow. The trial hearing is set to resume in Moscow on Wednesday (March 13, 2002).
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