MOSCOW, September 22 - RAPSI. Businessman Alexei Kozlov, who was convicted for fraud but later released by the Supreme Court, said he will defend his innocence, the Russian Legal Information Agency (RAPSI) reported.

Investigators said Kozlov and his accomplices used fake documents and sham companies to steel 626,000 shares in company producing imitation leather and films.
Kozlov denied the charges.

A Moscow district court sentenced Kozlov to eight years in prison in March 2009. The Moscow City Court reduced the sentence to seven years in July.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court board decided on September 20 to release the businessman from custody and reversed the lower courts judgments. The board remanded the case for reconsideration and released Kozlov on his own recognizance. Kozlov will remain at large during the judicial investigation.

Human rights activists and journalists welcomed the ruling.

Kozlov said he did not know when the court would hear the case.