Wife of 'Merchant of Death' tells court of tango lessons

Published on Tuesday 17 March 2009 21:04

THE wife of a Russian businessman accused of conspiring to sell weapons to Colombian Marxist rebels told a court in Bangkok yesterday that their only trip to Latin America was to learn to tango.

Alla Bout was testifying at an extradition hearing for Viktor Bout, a former Soviet air force officer dubbed "the Merchant of Death", who is reputed to have been one of the world's most prolific arms dealers.

Bout, 42, was arrested in Bangkok in March 2008 after US agents posed as arms buyers for Farc – the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia.

US prosecutors say Bout offered a deadly arsenal, including more than 700 surface-to-air missiles, thousands of guns, hi-tech helicopters and planes fitted with grenade-launchers.

Bout has long been linked to some of the world's most notorious conflicts, allegedly supplying arms to the former Liberian dictator Charles Taylor and the Libyan leader, Colonel Muammar al-Gaddafi, but he denies any wrongdoing.

Mrs Bout – who identified herself as a 45-year-old fashion designer – said she believed her husband was "a pawn in the chess game" between Russia and the United States, a reference to their geopolitical rivalry.

"I believe my husband does honest business," she told the Thai court. "We have been together 17 years. There is no reason for me to believe he has done anything illegal."

Although the US indictment of Bout does not allege he travelled to Latin America to set up the deal, his wife sought to distance him from any suggestion of involvement there.

She said the only trip he made to South America was to Argentina for three days with her in 1997 "to pay respects to Evita Peron and for tango lessons".