MOSCOW, March 29 (RAPSI, Oleg Sivozhelezov) – The Moscow City Court on Wednesday upheld a lower court’s decision to arrest communist ex-lawmaker Denis Voronenkov, who was killed in Ukraine last week, in absentia, RAPSI reports from the courtroom.

On March 3, Moscow’s Basmanny District Court issued an arrest warrant for Voronenkov. On March 15, his defense lawyers filed an appeal against the ruling.

On March 23, Voronenkov was shot dead in the central part of Ukrainian capital Kiev. However, the Moscow court decided to consider the appeal against his arrest and dismissed it.

Voronenkov, a former member of the Communist Party moved to Ukraine along with his wife Maria Maksakova, also an ex-lawmaker, last October and received Ukrainian citizenship in December 2016.

In Russia, Voronenkov faced numerous criminal charges including large scale fraud, and was arrested in absentia by a Moscow court; his name was put on the federal wanted list.

Investigators believe that in August 2010 through June 2011 Voronenkov assisted a group of accomplices in defrauding an owner of a building in Moscow of his property and its illegal sale. Voronenkov allegedly was paid over $1.2 million for his role in the fraud.

According to the press service of the Russian Investigative Committee, it was established that Voronenkov ensured financing of criminal activities and gave instructions to the accomplices. He also allegedly laundered the criminal proceeds and distributed the money among other participants in the fraud.