Dmitry Sets the Record Straight

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Lisa Rein
Dec. 21, 2001 08:48 AM
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On Wednesday night, I spoke with Dmitry Skylarov at a small event to celebrate his homegoing, hosted by the EFF.

Dmitry told me that he was upset with the U.S. Attorney's misrepresentation of his agreement with them.

Specifically, Dmitry says that:

• He still works for Elcomsoft and has no intention of leaving anytime soon.

  (The announcement from the U.S. Attorney's Office described Elcomsoft as Dmitry's "former employer.")

• There was no plea bargain made between Dmitry and the U.S. Attorney's Office

  (As the same announcement would lead you to believe: "...(Sklyarov) admitted his conduct in a hearing before U.S. District Judge Whyte in San Jose Federal Court. Under the agreement, Mr. Sklyarov agreed to cooperate with the United States in its ongoing prosecution of Mr. Sklyarov's former employer...")

• Dmitry's story has not changed: he still maintains that both he and his employer are not guilty of any misconduct.

Joe Burton's Statement 12_19_01

I want to state, for the record, that we, the defense, feel that there has been an injustice done to Dmitry Sklyarov and ElcomSoft. The U. S. Attorney's December 13th Press Release is a cleverly crafted statement that promotes the notion that Dmitry admits wrongful conduct and has entered into a Plea Agreement with the U.S. Government. I categorically reject the notion that there is any admission of wrongful conduct on the part of Dmitry Sklyarov, he has simply agreed to tell his story, which I might add is the identical story he has consistently told since day one of his arrest. In addition there is, quite simply, NO Plea Agreement. He has agreed to testify for the U. S. Government, if called and he will testify for ElcomSoft, if called.

I also want to set the record straight on the issue of Dmitry's employment with ElcomSoft. Dmitry has been employed since April 2000 and he remains employed by ElcomSoft and will continue his employment with ElcomSoft.

It is not unexpected that the U.S. Attorneys would look for a way to "save face" in this case, however to do so, at the expense of Dmitry is completely unacceptable to me.

Dmitry Sklyarov's Statement 12/19/01

I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation to each person who has supported and contributed to me during my detention, these past 5 months.

Naturally, I am very happy about returning to Russia and at the prospect of getting back to my family and friends. I am excited about spending the holidays in my homeland.

There are two points I wish to address, today. The first point is this: I am extremely disappointed with any implication that I am, in any way, cooperating with the government. My perspective is simply this: I am a man of integrity and as such am doing nothing more that telling the truth... I am not for or against anyone.

Secondly, there seems to have been some confusion as to my employment status with ElcomSoft. I would like to clear up this confusion… I have been employed by ElcomSoft since April 2000 and will continue to be employed in the future. As a matter of fact, I have remained ElcomSoft's long distance "virtual" employee throughout these past 5 months while detained, here in the United States.

ElcomSoft Founder/CEO Alex Katalov's Statement 12/19/01

First, let me say that the Diversion Agreement, reached between Dmitry Sklyarov and the US Attorney's office last Thursday (December 13, 2001) was reached with ElcomSoft's complete knowledge, cooperation and our unfailing support for our employee, Dmitry Sklyarov.

Neither ElcomSoft nor our legal team sees this agreement in any way counterproductive to our ongoing case, nor do we feel that Dmitry's testimony will be anything but supportive to our case. All that Dmitry has to do is to tell the truth; we, of course, welcome that; the truth will never change regardless of who calls Dmitry as a witness: the prosecution or the defense, or both.

From the company's standpoint, Dmitry's agreement serves ElcomSoft well. It provides us with the freedom and flexibility to pursue our best legal strategy without worrying about the possibility that Dmitry could face jail.

Lisa Rein is a co-founder of Creative Commons, a video blogger at On Lisa Rein's Radar, and a singer-songwriter-musican at lisarein.com.

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