Court punishes gauleiter of resort village in Kherson region

Olena Zavorykhina, the former head of the village of Volodymyrivka, who had sided with the Russians on her own, was sentenced to 15 years in prison with confiscation of property.

This decision was made on November 29, 2024, by the panel of judges of the Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Chernivtsi.

According to the Center for Investigative Journalism, 39-year-old Olena Zavorikhina, who previously served as the starosta of the Volodymyrivka starosta district of the Lazurnia community, voluntarily agreed to cooperate with the occupiers in the spring of 2022. She became the head of the village and was appointed head of the so-called occupation administration of Volodymyrivka, which was later "annexed" by the Russians to the "Skadovsk municipal district".

The court found that Zavorikhina took an active part in the creation of illegal authorities in the occupied territory, contributing to the strengthening of the occupation regime. Her actions are classified as high treason (Part 2 of Article 111 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine) and collaboration (Part 5 of Article 111-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

In addition to her prison term, the court ordered the confiscation of her property, including a 2.31-hectare land plot and a VAZ 21093 car. It should be noted that Zavorikhina also served as a member of the occupation council from the United Russia party.

It is noted that the court's verdict has not yet entered into force.

Meanwhile, a resident of Kherson was sentenced to 15 years in prison with confiscation of property, who voluntarily took a position in an illegal body created by the occupiers. The woman worked as an "expert" in the so-called "Expert Forensic Center" controlled by the Russian occupation administration.

Also, a professor at one of the local universities in Kherson organized the training of students according to the standards of the Russian Federation. The professor has been notified of suspicion of collaboration, but so far in absentia.

The so-called "head" of Dudchan from the Kherson region was sentenced to 10 years in prison with confiscation of property.

Ірина Глухова