Lawyer gives Snowden 'Crime and Punishment' as present

The Russian lawyer helping Edward Snowden said Wednesday he would give the US fugitive a copy of Fyodor Dostoyevsky's novel "Crime and Punishment" as he prepares to leave the Moscow airport where he has been holed up for a month.

Lawyer Anatoly Kucherena (L) opens the door inside the terminal F of Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport, on July 24, 2013, after his meeting with US National Security Agency (NSA) fugitive leaker Edward Snowden. Kucherena said Wednesday he would give the US fugitive a copy of Fyodor Dostoyevsky's novel "Crime and Punishment" as he prepares to leave the Moscow airport where he has been holed up.

"I bought him (Snowden) Dostoyevsky's 'Crime and Punishment'," said Russian lawyer Anatoly Kucherena, who had been helping the ex-NSA intelligence leaker with an asylum application and Wednesday passed him a document allowing him to move freely in Russia.

"I think that Raskolnikov, who killed the old money-lender... I think he should read about that," Kucherena told Russian television ahead of the meeting with Snowden.

He was referring to the seminal Russian novel's plot, in which a young Russian murders an old lady and is then tormented by his crime in the rest of the book.

"I don't want to say that there is a similarity of their world views, but still, I think this is a world classic and he will be interested," Kucherena added.

"I also bought him Chekhov for dessert," he said, referring to the great Russian short story writer and playwright Anton Chekhov.

It was not immediately clear when Snowden would be leaving the airport.

Snowden, 30, has been staying in the transit zone of Sheremetyevo airport since he arrived from Hong Kong on June 23. His passport had been revoked by the United States where he is wanted on charges of espionage.

Russia had said that Snowden must cease leaking information damaging the United States if he wants to stay in Russia. Last week Snowden filed an application for temporary asylum with Russia's migration authorities.