This story followed a popular trend of many 80s television series, portraying a Russian defection to the United States, and seeking help from the American characters of the show. This was probably due to the fact that the Cold War was in full effect at the time.
Before Murdock is told he's supposed to be deaf, he responds to the man in search of him in the open-air market before he looks at him to see that he spoke, which a deaf person would have to do.
Dimitri is better known as uber-bad guy, Falconetti, in the epic Rich Man, Poor Man - Book II (1976).