Testimony and Intelligence

• Judge Olga Kudeshkina noted in the verdict that Abrosimov's testimony indicated he knew Polonsky as an FSB officer who acted as a guarantor in commercial transactions, and that he had seen his service ID and weapon.
• The FSB was not mentioned again in the verdict, but the term was frequently heard during the trial.
• Witness T., a close friend of the late Max Lazovsky, testified that Lazovsky was an FSB officer who acted under the service's instructions.
• T. explained the motive for Atlan Nataev's murder: friends from Lubyanka gave Lazovsky a tape recording of a "wiretap" where Nataev promised to deal with not only Lazovsky but also his wife and child for something.
• Other testimonies suggested that FSB officers took Nataev to his execution.
• T. also stated that people from the FSB intimidated him to prevent his participation as a witness.
• T. mentioned the involvement of former foreign intelligence colonel Petr Suslov in the group's affairs, whom he met multiple times at Maxim's. (Suslov later collaborated with Khozh-Ahmed Nukhaev in the "Eurasia" movement).
• Journalist Georgy Rozhnov reported that before the bridge explosion, the bomber Shchelenkov consulted by phone with someone named "Volodya from the FSB."

PREDICTIONS

The Chechen Trail Leading to Lubyanka

• On September 11, 1999, the newspaper "Moskovsky Komsomolets" reported that Caucasians were planning to blow up three houses in Moscow.
• The report suggested this information reached the newspaper even before the first explosion occurred.
• Subsequent events included a second house explosion and the discovery of a third planned explosion site (in Kapotnya, near a warehouse, with no residential buildings nearby).

Context of Prior Bombings

• Anonymous terrorist bombings had occurred previously, primarily in the markets of the Caucasus.
• The first house explosion in the Caucasus occurred in the military town of Buinaksk.
• Major explosions resulting in many casualties were rare, occurring about once a year, usually followed by reports from special services about captured terrorists, after which the situation calmed down.

Newspaper Report on the Prediction

The newspaper "Moskovsky Komsomolets" published the following:

"Unique details about the events preceding the explosion on Guryanov Street became known to 'MK' from sources in the Federal Security Service of Russia. It turns out that counterintelligence officers received information about a terrorist act being prepared in Moscow several days in advance.

According to information available to 'MK', on Monday morning a phone call was received at the editorial office of one of the German radio stations (broadcasting in Russian). A voice with a Caucasian accent reported that in a few days three residential buildings in residential areas would be blown up in Moscow. German journalists recorded this call on a tape recorder.

Having contacted the FSB of Russia via international telephone communication, the Germans played the tape for the counterintelligence officers. (...) As FSB operatives assured 'MK', the 'telephone' version will be checked in detail."

Counter-Testimony from Anatoly Datsenko

Anatoly Datsenko, an employee of "Deutsche Welle," disputed the newspaper's account:

• He claimed there was no call to the studio, nor was any tape recording made.
• He stated he was taking a report for "Deutsche Welle" from a freelance correspondent in the Caucasus named Alvi (last name unknown), who may have published something in "MK."
• This occurred in the first days of September, while Alvi was discussing fighting in Dagestan.
• An outside voice with an accent suddenly appeared on the receiver and said something like: "Hey, journalist, we'll arrange something like that for you in Moscow soon!" The connection was immediately cut.
• Datsenko confirmed he never keeps tape recordings.
• On September 9, after the terrorist attack, he visited the FSB reception room and relayed the same information.
• When asked if he sent a refutation to the newspaper, he stated he consulted with his management, and they decided not to.

Context of Dagestan Conflict

• During this period, battles were ongoing in Dagestan, where Russian tanks and aircraft had been expelling Shamil Basaev's detachment from the small republic throughout most of August.
• One of the first terrorist threats originated from Dagestan, specifically on September 3, immediately following the explosion in the gaming complex on Manezhnaya: "A sensational report was distributed by France Press. Alvi Zakriev, the correspondent of this agency in Grozny, received a call..."