A former ATB security guard from Kakhovka was sentenced for treason

A former ATB security guard and member of the “Shield” civilian militia was sentenced to 15 years in prison for treason. After the occupation of Kakhovka, the man began working for the “police” force established by the Russians.

This is stated in the verdict of the Desnyansky District Court of Chernihiv.

The defendant is a 42-year-old native of the village of Rozdolne in the Kherson region. Before the full-scale invasion, he worked part-time as a loader and security guard at the “ATB” supermarket chain and was also a member of the Kakhovka-based civilian militia “Shield,” which was tasked with maintaining order in the city.

When Kakhovka was occupied, the man and his partner voluntarily agreed to work in the newly formed “Kakhovka City Police Department”—an illegal body that the occupiers had established using local collaborators.

Former police colleagues who had managed to leave the occupied territory recognized the man in a video taken at the police station after the occupiers had arrived.

One witness said he knew him personally as a former security guard at ATB and had seen him on duty at the station in the summer of 2022. Another witness recalled seeing him with his partner near the district police station—they were collecting money from locals while posing as police officers.

The investigation gathered evidence from several sources: testimony from former police officers who personally knew the defendant, journalistic investigations accompanied by photographs, and an expert analysis confirming that the person in the photos was indeed this man.

The man himself never appeared in court—the case was heard in his absence, and the state provided his legal representation. His attorneys argued for an acquittal, citing the lack of direct evidence of guilt.

The court rejected these arguments, stating that the totality of circumstantial evidence—testimony, publications, and expert analysis—was sufficient to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

The court found the man guilty on two counts under the Criminal Code—for voluntarily serving in an illegal law enforcement agency in the occupied territory and for treason due to defecting to the enemy during martial law.

The final sentence is 15 years of imprisonment, with confiscation of all property and a ban on holding any position in Ukraine’s government bodies for another 15 years.

Ірина Глухова