Russian officials have notified the US government that three members of accused Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's defense team falsely identified themselves as FBI employees when they went to Russia to investigate the case, prosecutors said Friday. The allegation was made in a legal filing in US District Court in Boston, where Tsarnaev faces a possible death penalty for his role in the bombings.
Prosecutors wrote, "While conducting interviews in Russia, the members of the defense team reportedly refused to produce documents confirming their legal status and identified themselves as employees of the FBI. As a result, the Russian government . . . expelled them."
Russian officials also said that members of Tsarnaev's defense team members claimed that the purpose of their recent visit was tourism.
Separately on Friday, lawyers and prosecutors agreed on plans for the jury selection process in the trial. |