First Acquittal in Russian War Crimes Prosecution

In a move hailed as a sign of the health of the Ukrainian justice system, a Russian soldier has been acquitted for the first time in the history of Ukraine’s war crimes trials. 

On October 30, 2025, the Borodianka District Court acquitted Yevhen Murzintsev, a member of the Russian National Guard, who was tried in absentia for looting a home in the Bucha district during the 2022 occupation.

The Borodianka District Court found the evidence provided by the prosecutor general’s office insufficient to convict the Russian citizen of violating the laws and customs of war, although the prosecutor’s office has already officially announced it will appeal the decision. 

Nonetheless, Oleksandr Pavlichenko, executive director the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union, described the verdict as a “good sign for the national justice system”.

The prosecution had alleged that Murzintsev looted a local resident’s home while serving with occupying Russian forces in the village of Blystavytsia, Bucha district, between February 24 and March 31, 2022. The homeowner was not present at the time of the alleged crime, having evacuated the village at the start of the full-scale invasion. 

When she returned home in mid-April following the area’s liberation, she discovered her house had been ransacked. The woman stated that the gate and front door to her home had been broken and everything inside overturned. A trench had been dug in her yard and evidence of a campfire and packaging from Russian military rations were found, suggesting that soldiers had been living on the property. A number of her possessions were missing, including men’s clothing, an electric saw, two grinders, a trimmer, a power drill and a sanding machine as well as a silver chain and earrings. Her computer had been dismantled, with only the case left behind.

Video Evidence

A neighbour of the victim told the court that he saw Russian soldiers enter her home. In addition, he said that Russian servicemen had begun digging trenches in his backyard. They then broke down the door to his house, searched the premises and stole money and food. After the liberation of Blystavytsia, the neighbour found an identification plate from a Russian armoured personnel carrier in his garden. The plate listed a military unit number and the surname of the individual in charge of the vehicle.

The court also examined other evidence, including videos from Telegram channels published in April 2022. The footage shows members of the Russian National Guard shipping packages from a SDEK express mail office in the Belarus city of Mozyr. According to the prosecution, the defendant was among them, having sent a parcel weighing 24.340 kg to a post office in Rubtsovsk, in Russia’s Altai Krai. 

Evidence also included a report from the dossier.center website, which identified individuals “allegedly involved in looting” in the Kyiv region. The report featured a video of soldiers mailing large bundles to Russia. It noted that the vast majority of the shipments never reached their addressees: of 168 parcels, 142 were stuck in Mozyr. 

The footage showed the interior of a courier service office filled with people in military uniform. Soldiers were seen bringing in packages from the street, packing them and filling out shipping documents. Over the course of the video, different military personnel are seen in the office, wearing patches that confirm their affiliation with Russian forces.

According to screenshots of shipping manifests published on Telegram channels, the accused’s name and address were listed among the senders. His shipment, weighing 24.34 kg, was destined for the Russian city of Rubtsovsk.

The evidence also included an analysis of phone numbers belonging to Russian military personnel, which was conducted by the investigation to confirm their presence in Ukraine. According to the investigation, the accused’s phone number was located in the village of Kopachi, Ivankiv district, Kyiv region, on February 24, 2022.

Evidence Falls Short

In the verdict, the judge of the Borodianka District Court acknowledged that the evidence confirmed the accused was in Ukraine with occupying forces and had mailed a package from Mozyr. The court also stated it did not doubt the credibility of the victim’s testimony. However, the judge concluded that the prosecution had not presented sufficient, proper and admissible evidence to prove that the accused was the individual who stole property from the victim’s home. Based on this, the court acquitted the Russian soldier.

Additionally, the court dismissed the victim’s civil claim for UAH 14,804.12 (352 US dollars) in property damages. The court ruled that all procedural costs, amounting to UAH 9,864.96 (235 dollars) for court-ordered merchandise examinations, will be covered by the state.

Prosecutors had sought a ten-year prison sentence for the Russian serviceman during closing arguments. The prosecutor general’s office of Ukraine has announced it will appeal. 

“We disagree with this verdict as we believe the evidence gathered conclusively shows that the accused committed a war crime,” the prosecutor general’s office said in a statement, citing Dmytro Syniuk, the lead prosecutor in the case. “The state has a duty to ensure accountability for crimes against Ukraine and we will use all legal mechanisms to see that justice is done.”

Under Ukrainian law, the prosecution has 30 days from the date of the ruling to file an appeal with the Kyiv Court of Appeal.

Oleksandr Pavlichenko, executive director of the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union, said that he considered the ruling a positive sign for the country’s judicial system.

“Yes, this is indeed the first acquittal in this category of cases. I see this as a positive step, showing that verdicts in war crimes cases are not handed down automatically but are subject to proper investigation. For me, this marks a return to proper judicial standards,” he said. 

Pavlichenko also cautioned that the public should have realistic expectations about investigating all documented war crimes, which he said numbered around 190,000. 

“Out of this total, we have 180 convictions, 18 of those are custodial sentences,” he continued. “As we can see, the majority were handed down in absentia, which is effectively a statement of fact rather than a real punishment. The task of restoring justice must be entrusted to the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression, a matter that falls under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court.”