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Asylum-Seeker Claims Russian Security Officers Behind 1999 Terrorist Bombing; Asks For Hel
by George Gedda, AP
Monday, Feb. 28, 2005 at 11:10 PM
WASHINGTON (AP) - A Russian who was granted political asylum last month met Friday with State Department officials on behalf of a former Russian security officer who, she says, is being punished because he knows the truth about a devastating 1999 bombing in Moscow. Alyona Morozova, 28, said she told U.S. officials that President Bush should raise the issue next Thursday when he meets with President Vladimir Putin in Slovakia. At stake is the fate of Mikhail Trepashkin, who is serving a four-year prison term.
Meeting briefly with reporters outside the State Department, Morozova said she believes Russian security officers were behind the September 1999 terrorist attack on an apartment complex in southern Moscow. The death toll was estimated at 300 and included her mother and boyfriend. Morosova was among the injured.
Russian authorities blamed Chechen terrorists. Morozova said the bombing was instrumental in rallying support for Putin, a veteran of the security services who was then prime minister. Russia has acknowledged that the bombing was a contributing factor to a military offensive against Chechen rebels that began a month later.
The United States has taken no position on the bombing.
Morozova joined a commission set up to investigate the bombing and believed her life was in jeopardy after a fellow commission member was murdered and another died of an unexplained food allergy.
The Bush administration denied two requests from her for political asylum but granted a third request, last month, without explanation.
In October 2003, Morozova's lawyer, Mikhail Trepashkin, a former state security officer, was arrested on a weapons charge that Morozova said was trumped up.
"I hope I'm one of the chances that can save his life," Morozova said, holding a picture of Trepashkin that showed him behind bars. She met with State Department officials from the human rights and Eurasian bureaus.
Morozova, who lives in Denver, said she doubts that the truth about the bombing will ever be found out. Russian officials have rejected claims of government involvement and have said the incident is an example of the kind of terrorism that the United States and Russia face.
The State Department declined comment on Morozova's meeting but referred a reporter to the most recent department worldwide human rights report, issued a year ago.
It said Trepashkin's arrest and trial "raised concerns about the undue influence" of the FSB security service and "arbitrary use of the judicial system." It added that a closed trial was held based on an indictment that was not made public.
The report also said Trepashkin's 2003 arrest came one month after his charges of FSB responsibility were cited in a book.
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