BANGKOK, February 1 - RAPSI, Yevgeny Belenky. Real estate mogul Sergei Polonsky and the other two Russians who were arrested in Sihanoukville, Cambodia, in late December, refused to give testimony to the investigating magistrate on Thursday, one of their Cambodian attorneys told RIA Novosti by telephone.

"Today Sergei Polonsky and his two friends categorically refused to give testimony to the investigating magistrate in their case," the attorney said. He added that during the previous interrogation Konstantin Baglay and Alexander Karachinsky, who were going to be questioned separately from Polonsky, demanded a new interpreter.

"He [the interpreter] was indeed not proficient in legal vocabulary. Now it appears that a new, more qualified interpreter has been found. At the least, Polonsky and his two friends were to be summoned for questioning again today. But they have categorically refused to testify. They keep changing their tactic with regard to the court; it is very difficult to work with them," the attorney said. He added that Baglay and Karachinsky "always say and do what Polonsky tells them."

The case itself is not particularly complex and it does not merit such close attention from the media or any other added obstacles, the attorney said. "The arrested Russians are themselves creating a fuss around their case and are stopping the investigation from proceeding normally," he added.

The Cambodian police arrested the three men on December 31 on charges of inflicting harm on the crew of a ship heading back to the city of Sihanoukville from nearby islands and of depriving them of their personal liberty.

According to the prosecution, the Russians, who were in a state of drunken intoxication, threatened the crew, locked them in the cargo hold and later forced them to jump overboard and to swim to the shore. The three men were later detained by military sailors, who turned them over to the police. The men have denied the charges, stating that they had an argument with the Cambodians over the amount of the New Year fireworks used.

The judicial inquiry into their case is nearing completion. Under Cambodian law, the investigating magistrate has the right to look into a case for six months, after which a senior judge can further extend the investigation.

In 2008, Forbes ranked Polonsky Russia's 40th richest man with a $4.35 billion fortune. He headed the Mirax Group, a major property development company that went bankrupt during the global economic crisis.