Kherson region to try head of Russian criminal investigation for torture

Investigators in Kherson region have brought a case against a man who headed the criminal investigation department in Hornostayivka during the occupation to court. He is accused of ill-treatment of local residents, which qualifies as a war crime.

This was reported by the press service of the Kherson Regional Prosecutor's Office.

Law enforcement officers sent to court an indictment against a man who headed the so-called criminal investigation department of the Russian Interior Ministry's Hornostayevsky department during the occupation. He is accused of cruel treatment of civilians committed by prior conspiracy with other persons under Part 2 of Article 28, Part 1 of Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine - violation of the laws and customs of war.

According to the investigation, in June 2023, the accused, together with members of the Russian army, arrived at a house in the temporarily occupied Hornostaivka. Under the pretext of a search, they broke into the home of a local resident. The owner was beaten, after which he and his wife were detained and taken to the premises of the former police station, which the Russians seized and used for their own purposes.

Within the walls of this police station, the head of the criminal investigation department of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs personally interrogated the couple, demanding information about possible cooperation with the Ukrainian military. The interrogation was accompanied by psychological and physical pressure and torture. The victims were released only a few hours later.

The pre-trial investigation was conducted by investigators of the National Police Department in Kherson region under the procedural supervision of the regional prosecutor's office. The prosecutor's office emphasized that the illegal actions of the occupation law enforcement officers are classified as war crimes. The court must establish the suspect's guilt and determine the punishment.

At the end of July, a former employee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Donetsk region was sentenced to 15 years in prison in Odesa for war crimes in Kherson region. During the occupation, he helped to force local authorities to cooperate with the occupiers, and together with the Russian military and security forces, he was involved in detentions, torture and intimidation of residents of the region.

Анна Бальчінос