Tuesday, 14 May ‘24
This week’s overview of key events and links to essential reading.
Also see
How to Defend a War Crimes Case
Ukrainian lawyer explains the challenges – and vital importance – of an effective defence for Russian indictees.
Tuesday, 14 May ‘24
This week’s overview of key events and links to essential reading.
Two Russians Suspected of Illegally Deporting Ukrainian
Investigators of the security service (SBU) in Zaporizhya issued a suspicion in absentia to two Russian citizens on charges of the illegal deportation of a Ukrainian citizen in violation of the laws and customs of war under Part 2 of Article 28 and Part 1 of Article 438 of the criminal code.
According to the investigation, Konstantin Razygrin, 47, and Nikolay Opryshko, 46, organised the forced deportation of a 63-year-old resident of Pology, an occupied town in the southern region of Zaporizhya. Razygrin headed the so-called department of migration in the occupied city of Melitopol, while Opryshko was the acting head of the de facto ministry of internal affairs of Russia in the Zaporizhya region. In October 2023 the two accused reportedly decided to deport a civilian from Ukraine: Razygrin drafted and signed the order and Opryshko approved it. The 63-year-old victim was taken first to Russia’s region of Rostov and then to the Pskov region, on Russian-Latvian border. There, persons unidentified by the investigation forced the man to walk towards the Latvian border checkpoint. The suspicion does not indicate where the victim’s current whereabouts. The SBU investigation stated that this was not an isolated case and that the accused deported more people, using the same route and forcing them to walk to Latvian border posts under the guise of being refugees to the EU.
Russian Junior Sergeant Sentenced in Absentia for Rape
On April 29, the Velyko Oleksandriv District Court of the Kherson Region sentenced in absentia Russian junior sergeant Vladik Nebiev to 12 years in prison for systematic sexual violence against a woman during the occupation of the Velyko Oleksandriv community in the Kherson region.
The 30-year-old soldier, from the Russian republic of Dagestan, assaulted the woman in her home on numerous occasions from July 2022 until the beginning of August 2022 when the Russian military left the occupied village.
The files of the trial, which was conducted behind closed doors, report the victim as testifying that in some cases “the sexual acts took place several times a day”. She recognised the accused from a photo.
The court found Nebiev guilty of violating the laws and customs of war as per Part 1 of Article 438 of the criminal code. The defence has 30 days to appeal the verdict.
Two Ukrainian Citizens Accused of Illegal Imprisonment of Prosecutor
Police investigators in the Donetsk region notified the suspicion in absentia to Ukrainian citizens Valery Krakovsky and 39-year-old Kateryna Prykhodko for violating the laws and customs of war due to a prior conspiracy by a group of persons (Part 2 of Article 28, Part 1 of Article 438 of the criminal code.)
According to the investigation, in March 2022, representatives of armed formations in the so called Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), which is controlled by the Russian Federation, detained a 34-year-old prosecutor of the Donetsk regional prosecutor's office near the occupied southern port city of Mariupol. The prosecutor was dressed in civilian clothes and was not taking take part in hostilities, but the Russian found his service card and detained him.
Krakovsky, a so-called “investigator in particularly important cases” within the de facto DPR general prosecutor's office and Prykhodko, deputy head of the investigative department, opened a criminal case against the man and charged him with forcible seizure and retention of power. He was detained for a year, with no opportunity to challenge the legality of the detention. On March 10, 2023, the prosecutor's case was reportedly closed and the preventive measure was cancelled. The suspicion does not indicate the victim’s current whereabouts.
