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Russian pianist accused of child sex abuse vows to clear name

© RIA Novosti . Grigoriy Sobchenko / Go to the mediabankRussian pianist Mikhail Pletnev
Russian pianist Mikhail Pletnev - Sputnik International
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Acclaimed Russian pianist Mikhail Pletnev pledged on Thursday to return to Thailand to clear his name over child sex abuse charges.

Acclaimed Russian pianist Mikhail Pletnev pledged on Thursday to return to Thailand to clear his name over child sex abuse charges.

On Wednesday, a Thai court allowed Pletnev, 53, to leave the country to accompany the Russian National Orchestra on its European tour. He must appear in court in Thailand by July 18.

"I am going to return after my tour and see the matter through and I hope Thai justice will rise to the occasion," Pletnev said at a RIA Novosti news conference.

The Grammy-winning musician has been charged with raping a 14-year-old boy. If convicted, he may face up to 20 years behind bars.

He recalled that a large group of people with video and photo cameras came up to him while he was having a lunch at a sports club in Thailand.

"They showed me police IDs and asked me to go with them to my house," he said, adding that they had not told him what he was accused of.

Pletnev arrived in Moscow to a media frenzy. He said that he could not recall such a buzz around his name, and that none of his shows had attracted so much attention before.

"I arrived in Moscow today and I saw a lot of journalists who wanted to talk about this topic," he said, adding that his orchestra had never previously been met by a journalist when arriving in Moscow from a world tour.

"When I do something good, for some reason, people do not talk about it so much," he went on.

MOSCOW, July 8 (RIA Novosti) 

 

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