Accused of helping the enemy army: court acquits Kherson resident

The court in Kherson found no evidence of cooperation between the resident of Kizomys and the Russian military and fully acquitted him. The prosecution was based on the testimony of neighbors and rumors, but the court found them insufficient to convict.

This is evidenced by the verdict of the Kherson City Court.

According to the prosecution, in August 2022, when the village was under occupation, the man allegedly passed information about pro-Ukrainian villagers to the Russian military. In particular, on August 15, according to the investigation, he led at least ten Russian military personnel to the houses of two neighbors. The occupants conducted searches there, threatening the owners because of the possible presence of weapons. In the second case, they took money, a hunting rifle and jewelry.

The victim claimed that he saw the defendant communicating with the Russian military and was nearby during the searches. There were also statements that he had threatened his fellow villagers and spoke of his intention to establish his own order in the village.

The prosecutor's office demanded 12 years in prison for the man. At the same time, the accused denied his guilt. He explained that the conflict with his neighbors arose because his chainsaw was stolen. According to him, while fleeing from his pursuers, he came across Russian military, who stopped him, put him in a car and forced him to show where his neighbor lived. The military then searched him and seized his weapons.

The court concluded that the testimony of the victims and witnesses did not prove that the man had collaborated with the occupiers. Some of the testimonies were based on assumptions and rumors, and the causes of the conflict between the parties remained unclear.

The court also noted that the mere presence of the accused near the Russian military or in their vehicles is not proof of cooperation without other evidence. It is only known that the occupiers were looking for weapons and offered to return them after participating in the "referendum".

Witnesses confirmed that the accused knew the Ukrainian military and the families of ATO participants, but there was no evidence that he passed this information to the Russians. Therefore, the court emphasized that in order to qualify under the article on aiding the aggressor state, it is necessary to prove the intention to harm Ukraine. In this case, no such evidence was found.

In another case, in Odesa, a court sentenced a resident of Kherson who was accused of collaborating with the occupation authorities during the seizure of the city in 2022.

Анна Бальчінос