Kommersant: Mikhail Khodorkovsky Was Sent to Uranium Mines

Yesterday there was information that Mikhail Khodorkovsky will be doing his time in the correctional facility of town of Krasnokamensk, Chita Region. The relatives and lawyers of the ex-YUKOS head so far do not have proof for this information. The correctional facility and Federal Penitentiary Service (FPS) left this information without any comments.

Right after the removal of Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Platon Lebedev from the Matrosskaya Tishina Prison, there were several suggestions where they might end up. Primarily, people was looking for Khodorkovsky in special correctional labor facility #13 in Saratov Region, but this information did not receive a further confirmation. Yesterday, Chita’s news agency Zabinfo reported that inmate Khodorkovsky arrived last Saturday in town of Krasnokamensk, Chita Region. He will be doing time in local correctional labor facility YG-14/10 and already appointed into the 8th Prison Regiment.

The correctional labor facility of minimum security YG-14/10 is located 2 kilometers off Krasnokamensk – second biggest town in Chita Region. Currently the facility holds about 1,000 inmates, majority of whom sentenced for three to five years for a theft. The labor facility was founded in this location in the end of 1960’s - after the discovery of Streltsovskoe uranium deposits. Soon, there was Priargunsky mining and chemical plant built in this place for the processing of uranium ore. By 1987 the plant was providing 30 percent of total uranium production in USSR. Currently, the plant was renamed to Priargunsky Mining and Chemical Association (part of the concern TVEL, which is the only uranium mining enterprise in Russia and one of the world largest suppliers of natural uranium). As the result of the mining activities, several radioactive polluted zones appeared next to the town of Krasnokamensk. Ecological organizations repeatedly raised an issue of harmful influence of the output of uranium to Krasnokamensk and adjacent regions. The inmates are not being used for work in uranium mines; earlier they were commandeered to build the plant and its infrastructures. The correctional facility has the sewing production, the section of wood processing, joiner and souvenir shop, and auxiliary cattle-breeding farm.

The officer on duty of YG-14/10 told Kommersant that he cannot confirm or reject the information about inmate Khodorkovsky. The local office of FPS of Chita Region also refused to comment on the question. The press service of FPS said that they heard the news only from Kommersant correspondent and that FPS has no information about the location of Mikhail Khodorkovsky. However, the Kommersant sources in FSB were not surprise by the news at all. “We knew already ten days ago where Khodorkovsky would be sent, “ the sources said. Attorney Genrikh Padva also learned from Kommersant Korrespondent about Khodorkovsky possible location in Krasnokamensk and could not comment on the information. Anton Drel’, another attorney of ex-YUKOS head, told Kommersant that he doesn’t know anything about the location and will wait for official confirmation of the information. “I talked today with Mikhail’s spouse and parents,” Drel’ said. “They also are not aware of the location and they did not receive any official notifications.”

The defense of Platon Lebedev and Mikhail Khodorkovsky hopes to receive soon an official document, which would reveal the location of their clients. On October 13, as Kommersant already wrote, the defense submitted the petition with demand to know where the clients are and what their health status is. This petition was submitted during the meeting with investigator at General Prosecution Office Mikhail Tumanov (he investigates the case about money laundering, which most likely will result new charges for Khodorkovsky and Lebedev). “So far, investigator Tumanov did not answer our question,” Evgeny Baru, Lebedev’s attorney, said. “But we’ll wait. He is responsible now for our clients.”

The defense worries mostly about the conditions of their clients. “For all this time –during the transportation—our clients were out of the reach for the legal defense,” Baru pointed out. “We will be further protecting their legal rights.” The lawyers are getting ready to work with Khodorkovsky and Lebedev’ new cases. “We still don’t know how we are going to work,” Baru continued. “It looks like the authorities will be transporting our clients from place to place.”

by Marina Lepina
Kommersant, 10.20.2005