Russian Dancer convicted over Bolshoi acid attack

Russian dancer Pavel Dmitrichenko was found guilty today in an acid attack that nearly blinded the artistic director of the Bolshoi Ballet and tarnished the reputation of the renowned theatre.

A Moscow judge said Dmitrichenko and two co-defendants had intentionally caused grievous bodily harm to Sergei Filin, who had a jar of acid splashed in his face by a masked attacker on the night of January 17th.

"Their guilt in committing the crime has been established in full," judge Yelena Maximova said. She was expected to issue a sentence later.

Handcuffed in a courtroom cage with his co-defendants, Dmitrichenko looked impassively towards a window and showed little emotion as judge Maximova read the verdict from a thick sheaf of papers.

Prosecutors have asked for a nine-year prison sentence for Dmitrichenko, who was accused of ordering the attack, ten years for Yuri Zarutsky, accused carrying it out, and six years for Andrei Lipatov, accused of driving Zarutsky to the scene.

The attack, which left Mr Filin writhing in pain and badly damaged his eyesight, revealed bitter rivalries behind the scenes of the Bolshoi Theatre and damaged the standing of one of Russia’s most prominent cultural institutions.

Dmitrichenko has acknowledged he wanted Mr Filin roughed up and had given Zarutsky the go-ahead to hit him, but said he had not expected acid to be used.

The dancer, who joined the Bolshoi as a teenager in 2002 and made his name playing villains such as the murderous tsar in the ballet ‘Ivan the Terrible’, had pleaded not guilty.

The judge said Dmitrichenko had monitored Mr Filin’s movements on the night of the attack and told Zarutsky by mobile phone the artistic director was on his way home from the theatre.

Zarutsky, who has admitted guilt, has said that throwing acid in Mr Filin’s face was his own idea and he had not told Dmitrichenko of his plan.

The prosecution said Dmitrichenko was motivated by a conflict with Mr Filin (43).

In court last week, prominent former Bolshoi dancer Nikolai Tsiskaridze said Mr Filin had denied roles to both Dmitrichenko and his girlfriend, a ballerina.

Reuters