SBI presses new charges against Yanukovych
An investigator with the State Bureau of Investigation has issued a criminal suspicion notice to former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych accusing him of leading an organized criminal group.
That’s according to the SBI press service, Ukrinform reports.
The investigators believe the group included former high-ranking officials of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Security Service of Ukraine, and the Armed Forces. All are suspected of committing serious and grave criminal offenses during mass protests that took place in the center of Kyiv from February 18 to February 20, 2014.
The offenses in question are as follows:
- Committing a terrorist act to intimidate the population, which led to serious implications and deaths;
- Inflicting bodily injuries of varying severity, premeditated murders, and attempted premeditated murders with the use of firearms and special means against protesters;
- Abuse of power and official authority, accompanied by violence and the use of weapons and special means, which caused seriously affected the rights protected by law, the interests of individual citizens, state and public interests, and the interests of legal entities; and
- Illegal obstruction of public meetings, rallies, street marches, and demonstrations.
It has been established that the actions of the organized criminal group in the said period alone led to 76 deaths and 800 injuries of varying severity among protesters.
It is noted that the suspicion notice was sent to the ex-president’s last known places of residence. Copies of the notice were also handed to his defense attorneys.
The SBI recalled that the decision of the investigating judge following consideration of the SBI motion on August 2, 2021, granted permission for a special (in absentia) pre-trial inquiry targeting the main suspect.
The investigating judge is also currently considering a motion to remand Yanukovych in custody.
Further pre-trial inquiry is underway, with evidence being collected to charge other members of the organized group, led by the former president of Ukraine, with crimes committed against protesters in 2013-2014.
As reported earlier, on January 24, 2019, the Obolonsky District Court of Kyiv sentenced ex-president Viktor Yanukovych in absentia to 13 years in prison for high treason, as well as aiding and abetting an aggressive war.
At the same time, Yanukovych was found not guilty of violating the territorial integrity of Ukraine.
The court also ruled to recover from Yanukovych in favor of the state procedural costs for forensic examinations in the amount of UAH 98,561.20 and to uphold the asset seizure imposed within the proceedings.
According to the court ruling, Yanukovych's sentence shall be counted from the time of his actual detention.
Yanukovych's defense has appealed the verdict in the high treason case.
On October 2 last year, the Court of Appeal upheld Yanukovych's verdict handed down by the first instance court.
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