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Suspect in Lake Natoma attack pleads not guilty
By Hudson Sangree - Bee Staff Writer
Published 11:08 am PDT Wednesday, August 22, 2007
One of two men charged in the alleged hate-crime killing of Satender Singh in a confrontation at Lake Natoma last month pleaded not guilty Wednesday at his arraignment in Sacramento Superior Court.
Aleksandr Shevchenko, 21, faces a single felony count of intimidating and interfering with a person's rights, a charge that falls under the state's hate crimes statutes.
Shevchenko, with close-cropped brown hair and wearing a white shirt and black pants, shook his head and said "not guilty" when Judge Jaime Rene Roman read the charge against him.
Defense attorney David Henderson said after court that neither he nor his client would discuss the case.
"We'll just let the process work its way through," Henderson said, standing beside Shevchenko in a courthouse elevator.
Shevchenko is scheduled to return to court Sept. 26 for a preliminary hearing. He remains free after posting part of a $25,000 bond.
A second suspect in the case is a fugitive and is believed to be in Russia.
Andrey Vusik, 29, of West Sacramento, allegedly punched Singh on July 1.
Singh, 26, fell backward, striking his head and rupturing a critical part of his brain stem. He died four days later.
Authorities said Vusik left the country after the Fijian man's death. He is sought on a warrant for his arrest on suspicion of involuntary manslaughter and a hate crime.
Sheriff's investigators have said Vusik and Shevchenko were part of a group that exchanged taunts and insults with Singh and his group on the shores of Lake Natoma.
Friends with Singh that day have said the "Russian-speaking" group hurled anti-gay epithets and racial taunts before Singh was punched.
Relatives of both suspects have insisted Singh's death was not intentional. Vusik's wife said her husband acted in self-defense.
The suspects' families have maintained that members of Singh's group were dancing provocatively, using foul language and drinking heavily that Sunday at the park.
The killing has sparked outrage among gay activists and anti-hate groups.
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