Kohver Could Be Granted Bail, Says Attorney
Although Estonian officials are downplaying reliability, the Russian state-appointed lawyer for captured Estonian official Eston Kohver said that if the Estonian embassy rents an apartment and pays a deposit to the court, Kohver could be freed and placed under house arrest.
In an interview with Eesti Päevaleht, Yevgeni Aksyonov said the Estonian embassy said they could offer guarantees that Kohver would not flee if granted house arrest, but would not pay for an apartment, and Estonia could show good will by granting bail to the two former KGB officials recently arrested for illegally crossing into Estonia and resisting arrest.
He said the FSB, the Russian security service, says it has video and GPS proof Kohver was on Russian soil during the arrest, but that he himself has not seen the evidence yet. ISS, the Estonian Internal Security Service, recently handed Russian authorities what the ISS called proof Kohver was on Estonian territory.
The court will discuss the matter next week, and will decide if the two-month arrest warrant will be extended. Aksyonov said there is "no chance" the arrest won't be extended.
Spokesmen for both the ISS and the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said there is no point in a public discussion with Kohver's lawyer. The ministry said there is no reason to believe the process will be objective and fair.
Kohver, reportedly of his own volition, waived his Estonian-appointed defense counsel shortly after his capture and arraignment in early September.