Russian soldiers jump bail in Chechen massacre case

Source: The Guardian

4.45pm
Russian soldiers jump bail in Chechen massacre case

Tom Parfitt in Moscow
Wednesday April 18, 2007
Guardian Unlimited

Three special forces servicemen who were being prosecuted for
massacring a group of Chechen civilians in one of Russia's highest
profile criminal trials have gone on the run days before proceedings
were expected to draw to a close.

The three men in the Ulman case - named after the officer who
controlled the GRU (chief military intelligence directorate) unit -
had been granted bail despite protests from the victims' families.

Captain Eduard Ulman, Alexander Kalagansky and Vladimir Voyevodin
previously admitted shooting six Chechens, including a pregnant
woman, on a mountain road in southern Chechnya in January 2002,
but claimed they were innocent because they were following orders.

Their prosecution has been seen as a test case for attempts to
punish war crimes in Chechnya, although critics have questioned
why senior officers have not been prosecuted.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/russia/article/0,,2060269,00.html