The Moscow City Court upheld the arrest of Ilya Traber, who is accused of ordering the contract killing of Vyborg city councilor Alexander Petrov. The hearing on the defense's appeal was held behind closed doors, according to a Mediazona correspondent.
Traber's lawyer Igor Sochiants requested the closed session to present the court with his client's medical documents. The prosecutor did not object.
Traber does not admit guilt, his lawyer said.
The 75-year-old businessman was detained on June 17 in St. Petersburg, then transferred to Moscow and placed in a pretrial detention center. His business partner Vladimir Danilenko, who was also arrested, is a co-defendant in the case.
According to the investigation, Traber was the mastermind behind the murder of Alexander Petrov, who was shot dead in Vyborg on October 24, 2020. The alleged perpetrators are former boxer Alisultan Nadirbegov and Sait Saladinov; they have also been arrested.
Fontanka reported that some of the testimony against Traber came from his former employee Igor Lykov, who had returned from Ukrainian captivity. According to the outlet, Lykov claims he was present when the murder was discussed.
Traber is a St. Petersburg businessman and crime figure who was once close to Vladimir Putin. As detailed in The Insider's investigation '4% of Putin,' he was linked to the Tambov organized crime group and controlled the St. Petersburg Oil Terminal. According to sources cited by the outlet, Traber was part of Putin's inner circle and attended his birthdays.
After his arrest, Traber began divesting his business stakes. According to Rotonda, in June he withdrew from the ownership of the company 'Bureau of Digital Projects,' and in early July from 'PKI SPb.' The shares were transferred to his business partners. However, Traber remains a co-owner of at least six companies, including those linked to port infrastructure in Primorsk.