The lawyer in the town of Kyzyl in central Russia’s autonomous Republic of Tuva was in a judge’s chambers to look at the paperwork on the drunk-driving accident. After the judge’s secretary or clerk leaves the room, the lawyer is seen taking the report in his bag and then seems to change his mind and put it in his pocket. He then appears to change his mind again and eats the paper. When the woman returns, he reportedly then said that the report is missing and thus there is no case against his case. The woman is suspicious and called security. Ultimately the video below confirmed her suspicions.
The lawyer now faces up to two years in prison or a 200,000 roubles (£2,000) fine.
Of course, when high-ranking officials like Sandy Berger does the same thing to cleanse a classified record for President Clinton, the matter is treated by the Justice Department in this country as a relatively minor matter.
The question in the Russian case is what happens to the client now that there is no evidence. My guess is that the court will allow alternative sources in light of the conduct of the defense. It is certainly more appealing than waiting for further evidence disclosure.
