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Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout argues conviction appeal
Source: Reuters
Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout argues conviction appeal
By Nate Raymond
NEW YORK | Thu Aug 22, 2013 1:30pm EDT
(Reuters) - Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout urged a U.S. appeals court on Thursday to reverse his 2011 conviction for conspiracy to kill Americans, arguing he was a victim of a "vindictive" prosecution.
Albert Dayan, a lawyer for Bout, said there was no legitimate law enforcement reason for targeting a man he claimed evidence showed was no longer in the arms business.
Bout, 46, is serving a 25-year prison sentence for conspiring to sell arms to people he thought were Colombian rebels who intended to kill U.S. soldiers. His case has strained relations between Washington and Moscow, which has demanded the return of the onetime Soviet air force officer.
Bout, the subject of the book "Merchant of Death" and the inspiration for Nicholas Cage's character in the 2005 movie "Lord of War," supplied military-grade weaponry to conflict zones around the world, according to prosecutors.
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By Nate Raymond
NEW YORK | Thu Aug 22, 2013 1:30pm EDT
(Reuters) - Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout urged a U.S. appeals court on Thursday to reverse his 2011 conviction for conspiracy to kill Americans, arguing he was a victim of a "vindictive" prosecution.
Albert Dayan, a lawyer for Bout, said there was no legitimate law enforcement reason for targeting a man he claimed evidence showed was no longer in the arms business.
Bout, 46, is serving a 25-year prison sentence for conspiring to sell arms to people he thought were Colombian rebels who intended to kill U.S. soldiers. His case has strained relations between Washington and Moscow, which has demanded the return of the onetime Soviet air force officer.
Bout, the subject of the book "Merchant of Death" and the inspiration for Nicholas Cage's character in the 2005 movie "Lord of War," supplied military-grade weaponry to conflict zones around the world, according to prosecutors.
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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/08/22/us-usa-crime-arms-idUSBRE97L0XE20130822