Death Sentence

Manawatu Times, Volume 63, Issue 62, 15 March 1938, Page 7

Death Sentence

RUSSIAN TREASON TRIAL THREE LIVES SPARED United Press Association—By El®ctrlo Telegraph.—-Copyright. MOSCOW, March 13. At the Soviet treason trial the accused Rakovsky was sentenced to twenty years’ imprisonment, Pletnoff to twentylive years and Dessonoff to fifteen years. The remainder were sentenced to death. M. Brande, counsel for Levin, appealed for his client’s life, as he was the dupe of Yagoda. M. Kommodoff spoke on behalf of Pletnoff and Kazakoff on similar grounds. Then followed the last words of the piisoners. Gringko, speaking without a trace of fear, declared: “I am a traitor and admit all my crimes. I do not deserve clemency. I am happy that our conspiracy was crushed before more horrible crimes were committed.” Chernoff admitted he was a German spy and did not d.serve clemency, but wanted liis life spared in order that he might purge himself of his crimes. Ivanoff half-heartedly appealed for mercy. The prosecutor, M. Vishinsky, demanded a sentence of 25 years’ imprisonment for Rakovsky and Dessonoff and death for the remaining 19 accused. M. Vishinsky denounced the prisonera in most scathing language, and declared that never had there been such a case of a disgusting chain of villainy. M. Vishinsky’s invective lasted for more than two hours. He said that the prisoners were agents not of a single foreign intelligence service, but of at least four—the German, Japan ese, English and Polish. In the course of his tirade against the prisoners, he said: “Wo cannot leave such people alive. I would ask for Yagoda’s head even if he was guilty of a millionth part of his crimes. The whole country demands the shooting of traitors like mad dogs. ’ ’ The audience applauded loudly at the end of his outburst.