Russian commander to be tried for abuse of people during occupation of Mykolaiv region

The court will consider in absentia the case of a Russian military officer who detained and tortured local residents during the enemy's occupation of Snihurivka, Mykolaiv region.

According to the press service of the Mykolaiv Regional Prosecutor's Office, the accused is the commander of the 2nd reconnaissance platoon of the 205th separate motorized rifle Cossack brigade of the Russian Federation.

According to the investigation, during the temporary occupation of the Snihuriv community in Mykolaiv region, he, along with other Russian military personnel, detained and imprisoned four local residents.

The detainees were subjected to physical and psychological violence, bullying and threats. One of the men was intimidated by rape in order to obtain information about former ATO (JFO) participants and their cooperation with the Ukrainian army. The victims were subjected to moral humiliation and held in inadequate conditions. These actions are classified as crimes committed by a group of persons, which is a gross violation of international humanitarian law.

The prosecutor's office has completed the investigation and sent to court an indictment against the Russian military officer, who is accused of violating the laws and customs of war committed by a group of persons by prior conspiracy (part 2 of article 28, part 1 of article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). The soldier faces up to 12 years in prison.

The court recently sentenced an employee of the Snihurivska correctional colony in Mykolaiv region who defected to the enemy. In addition to the prison term, the man was stripped of his special officer rank.

The court proved that during the occupation of the city of Snihurivka, Mykolaiv region, by the Russian armed forces, the man, who worked as a senior inspector in Snihurivka Correctional Colony No. 5, voluntarily cooperated with the occupiers.

In addition, the prosecutor's office accused a 52-year-old resident of Pervomaisk of distributing materials calling for changes in the borders of Ukraine and supporting Russian aggression. The woman was an active user of the Russian social network Odnoklassniki, where she shared posts supporting Russia's actions against Ukraine, glorified the aggressors and discredited the Ukrainian military.

In early September, SBU CI detained an informant of Russian military intelligence in Mykolaiv. The agent was collecting coordinates for new missile and drone strikes on the city. The aggressor was trying to bypass air defense systems, so he wanted to find out the location of anti-aircraft missile systems and radar stations of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The enemy's attention was focused on the enterprises of the defense industry of Ukraine.

Ірина Глухова