Russian national Alexei Burkov has pleaded not guilty to five counts related to alleged cybercrimes and is set to appear before a US jury next April, a Sputnik correspondent reported from a US federal courtroom in Alexandria, Virginia, on Friday
ALEXANDRIA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd November, 2019) Russian national Alexei Burkov has pleaded not guilty to five counts related to alleged cybercrimes and is set to appear before a US jury next April, a Sputnik correspondent reported from a US federal courtroom in Alexandria, Virginia, on Friday."I set the case for April 21, 10 a.m. with a jury," Judge T.S. Ellis ruled during a hearing at the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
When asked to enter his plea, Burkov through his lawyer refused to admit any wrongdoing, denying all five charges against him.
The defendant, who appeared in the court for the third tome after being recently extradited from Israel, waived a formal reading of charges and through his lawyer entered the plea of "not guilty."
The judge ruled that the jury trial will be outside a speedy proceedings timeline because of the need for the defendant to prepare as well as the "voluminous discovery" and the general complexity of the case.
According to the judge's ruling, any pretrial motions can be submitted by February 7.
"If I need a hearing [on motions] it will be February 21," Ellis said.
Burkov's lawyer Gregory Stambaugh told reporters that the defendant was in "good spirits" and he was not aware of any medical issues.
An interpreter, who is assisting Burkov during the proceedings, was asked by judge Ellis to first prove his skills by translating a Russian word for "ice cream" into English.
"Tell the people in the court what 'morozhenoe' means," Ellis said.
After the interpreter passed the impromptu test, Ellis explained that in the 1960s he visited the then Soviet Union and added he will never forget the Russian word for ice cream.
Burkov is suspected of running two websites for hackers, including one that was selling stolen bank card numbers and was used in over $20 million-worth of fraudulent purchases.
The US authorities have charged Burkov with wire fraud, computer intrusions, identity theft and money laundering. If convicted on all counts, Burkov faces a maximum of 80 years in prison. However actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum allowed penalties, according to the US Justice Department.
Prior being extradited to the United States, Burkov spent almost four years in Israeli custody attempting unsuccessfully to be sent to Russia while the authorities enforced a ban on his case being covered in the media.
