LONDON, July 3 (Reuters) – A Russian scientist who was arrested last week in Siberia on suspicion of treason and transferred to Moscow despite suffering from advanced pancreatic cancer has died, his spokesman said on Sunday. lawyer at Reuters.
The scientist, Dmitry Kolker, had been taken to the Lefortovo prison in Moscow, said lawyer Alexander Fedulov.
“He died yesterday. Tomorrow we will file a complaint for his arrest,” he said.
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Kolker’s family said last week that he had been taken from a hospital in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, where he was being fed through a tube, and FSB security service agents had taken him. sent on a flight to Moscow.
Kolker had a doctorate in physics and mathematics. The family said he had been accused of collaborating with security services in China, where he had previously given scientific lectures. They protested his innocence.
On Saturday, the state news agency TASS said Russia had arrested a second scientist in Novosibirsk on suspicion of treason. It was unclear whether the two cases were related. Read more
A number of Russian scientists have been arrested and charged with treason in recent years for allegedly delivering sensitive material to foreigners. Kremlin critics say the arrests often stem from unfounded paranoia.
Betrayal in the state is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
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