MOSCOW, July 28 (RAPSI) - Ex-journalist Ivan Safronov charged with treason has refused to sign a plea deal with investigators, according to attorney Ivan Pavlov.

An investigator proposed a bargain to Safronov envisaging guilty plea and disclosure of his journalist sources, the lawyer told RAPSI on Tuesday. The defendant did not seriously consider the proposal; he denied his guilt.

Safronov was arrested on July 8. The same day Moscow’s Lefortovsky District Court detained him until September 6. He is suspected of treason. According to the Roscosmos press service, Safronov’s arrest is not connected with his work in the company. On July 13, he was charged with treason.

Investigators claim Safronov has transmitted secret military information to the Czech intelligence services which, as it known, are linked to the U.S. security agencies. 

The former reporter of Kommersant and Vedomosti newspapers was appointed as advisor of Dmitry Rogozin in May 2020 after a scandal related to the publication of an explosive article about possible resignation of the Federation Council head Valentina Matviyenko.