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Accused of French Falcon-50EX crash to read files soon

The Major Investigations Office of the Russia’s Investigative Committee has finished a preliminary investigation into the Falcon-50EX crash in Vnukovo airport that killed three crewmembers and a passenger, Total CEO Christophe de Margerie.

The charges of a crime under part 3 of article 163 of the RF Penal Code (violation of safety standards for traffic and operation of the aircraft by a person obliged to follow those standards by virtue of their work and position, that led to large damage and death of more than two people) were pressed against employees of Vnukovo Air Traffic Center, affiliate of Moscow Automated Flight Management Center of State Corporation for Air Traffic Organization: control tower operator Roman Dunayev, flight controller of the takeoff control station of Vnukovo Air Traffic Organization Center Alexander Kruglov, taxiing controller Nadezhda Arkhipova, employees of Vnukovo airport service: snowplow driver Vladimir Martynenko, leading flight engineer and head of shift at the maintenance office Vladimir Ledenev.

Following an additional investigation against trainee flight controller Svetlana Krivsun the case against her has been dismissed because no traces of the crime under part 3 of article 263 of the Russian Criminal Code were found in her actions.

The investigators revealed that the snowplow had had no failures or technical devices set on it.

On 25 January 2016, the accused and their lawyers were notified about the end of investigation in accordance with article 215 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

The accused and their lawyers are going to start the files of the case on 26 January 2016 in accordance with article 217 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

After the accused and their lawyers have finished reading the files, the case will be sent to the Prosecutor General’s Office for the indictment to be approved and them to be sent to court to be tried on the merits.