The trial of a Russian dissident accused of making and possessing thousands of indecent images of children has been stayed due to his ill health.
Vladimir Bukovsky, 75, denies five counts of making indecent images of children, five of possessing indecent images of children and one of possessing a prohibited image of a child.
The trial had been fixed for the third time at Cambridge Crown Court when Judge Gareth Hawkesworth granted the application to stay proceedings on Monday.
Maia Cohen-Lask, representing Mr Bukovsky, said in a statement released after the hearing:
“Vladimir Bukovsky has always strongly denied the allegations against him, and continues to do so. He has spent the last three years of his life fighting these charges. However, today’s judgment recognises that he is simply far too ill to be able to participate in the trial process and defend himself effectively. This is the right outcome in circumstances where no trial of Mr Bukovsky, given the state of his health, could have been a fair one.”
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