MOSCOW, October 1 (RAPSI) – The Moscow City Court on Monday extended detention of 11 defendants in the in St. Petersburg metro terror attack case until January 3, 2019, RAPSI reported from the courtroom.

According to Olga Dinze, the lawyer of one of the defendants, defense hopes that the case will be transferred to court for hearing before the end of the year.

Currently, defense attorneys are reading case papers, Dinze told RAPSI.

On April 3, 2017, an unknown device exploded in a train between St. Petersburg metro stations Technological Institute and Sennaya Ploshchad. According to law enforcement authorities, 16 people died in the blast including a suicide bomber, over 50 were wounded; 112 persons were acknowledged as victims in the case.

Eleven people were arrested and detained in the case. They were charged with terrorism and illegal acquisition, sale, keeping, transportation or bearing of explosives. 

The defendants have pleaded not guilty.

Investigators believe that a group with a goal of spreading terrorist activity, including attacks on Russia and its citizens, was founded in Syria. According to investigation, suicide bomber Akbarzhon Dzhalilov manufactured two explosives and brought them to the St. Petersburg metro.

One of the bombs that Dzhalilov kept to himself exploded around 2:40 PM Moscow time between St. Petersburg metro stations Technological Institute and Sennaya Ploshchad. The second bomb located at Ploshchad Vosstaniya station failed to detonate because of its malfunction and was subsequently found and disarmed.