A judge from Crimea has been charged with seizing land for the benefit of the occupiers

Judges of the so-called Feodosia City Court have been notified of suspicion of committing a war crime. Investigators believe that the suspect unlawfully deprived a Ukrainian citizen of his right to own a plot of land with a residential building for the benefit of the occupiers.

This was reported by the Prosecutor’s Office of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the City of Sevastopol. 

The suspect faces up to 12 years in prison.

The case file states that the suspect, through a court ruling, deprived a Ukrainian citizen of ownership rights to land in the temporarily occupied Crimea. In 2020, she issued an unlawful ruling in the interests of the occupying state regarding the forced expropriation of a land plot with a residential house located on it in the village of Ordzhonikidze (now the village of Kaidagor).

Later, the plot and the house were put up for auction, and a Russian citizen purchased the property. 

The case file notes that in rendering her decision, the defendant was guided by Putin’s Decree No. 201, under which Ukrainian citizens are prohibited from owning land plots in Crimea, as if they were foreigners.

Under international law, the confiscation of property from civilians in an occupied territory constitutes a war crime and directly violates international rules and laws of war.

In 2024, a Ukrainian court found the suspect guilty of treason, and the indictment regarding her collaboration with the occupying forces is currently pending in court.
 

Юлія Калабайда