Details of the interrogation of Demian Hanul's killer in Odesa: who the killer was and how he prepared

"I had to make a control shot in the head": the accused in the murder of activist Demian Hanul was interrogated in Odesa

Today, on March 4, the Prymorskyi District Court of Odesa held a high-profile hearing in the case of the murder of a well-known volunteer and activist Demian Hanul. The defendant, Serhiy Shalaev, revealed shocking details of the preparations for the crime, Intent correspondent reports.

"Curator from the SBU" and the hunt for a "traitor"

According to Shalayev, the contacts of the person who introduced himself as an "SBU officer" named Klymenko were allegedly given to him by his own mother. The defendant claims that he hoped that through this acquaintance he would be transferred from the Armed Forces to the special service.

The correspondence was conducted on Viber. At first, Klymenko set a task to follow the "traitor of Ukraine" - the defendant received Hanul's photo and personal data on February 5, 2025. Five days later, he received an order to liquidate him. The main condition was a control shot in the head. Shalayev was given a weapon and two grenades to carry out the crime.

A professional intelligence officer in the role of a killer

As it turned out during the interrogation, Shalaev had serious training: service in the special police unit "Titan", officer courses at the Faculty of Intelligence and Special Operations. During the surveillance of the activist, he was officially on vacation, and after it ended, he lied to the commander that he was allegedly performing a "special task."

The fateful day and the escape attempt

On the day of the murder, Shalaev was waiting for Hanul near a house on Karavansky Street. When he saw the target, he fired twice, and then caught up with the victim and fired a "control" shot to the head. After the murder, the curator claimed that he had allegedly "killed the wrong person" (although he had previously provided accurate information about Hanul) and ordered him to prepare for escape, having previously mined the rented apartment with tripwire grenades.

An attempt to pay off

During the hearing, it became known that the defendant's brother tried to transfer 100 thousand hryvnias to the victim's wife. However, Demian Hanul's widow categorically refused the money, saying that it would not fix the crime.

When asked by the prosecutor's office whether he regretted that the evacuation team did not take him away, Shalaev replied:"I am sorry that I took a person's life". The defense could not provide any evidence of the real existence of Klymenko's "curator".

As Intent previously wrote, Serhiy Shalaev is also accused of unauthorized abandonment of the unit. According to the investigation, the accused called his commander and said that he was not going to return to the army after his vacation, as he was recruited to serve in the Security Service of Ukraine.

In fact, unidentified persons acting in the interests of Russian special services contacted Serhiy Shalayev and ordered him to kill Demian Hanul in exchange for a place in the SBU.

The man followed the activist for a long time before attacking him. At today's meeting, the prosecutor of the Specialized Defense Prosecutor's Office of the Southern Region requested to introduce characterization documents and written evidence. The court, having heard the opinion of the parties, attached them. The accused is scheduled to be interrogated at the next hearing.

Earlier, the Security Service of Ukraine's counterintelligence, together with the UK intelligence services, detained a British citizen, Ross David Cutmore, who is suspected of collaborating with the Russian special services. Investigators have reason to believe that the instructor imported and distributed the weapons used to kill Demian Hanul, Iryna Farion and Andriy Parubiy in Ukraine.

The court also extended the pre-trial restraint for Serhiy Shalayev, a suspect in the murder of Odesa activist Demian Hanul, for 60 days without bail. The relatives of the deceased insist on life imprisonment and doubt his remorse.

During the preliminary hearing on November 3, 46-year-old Shalaev unexpectedly addressed the relatives of the deceased. He stated that he regretted his actions and allegedly did not know who the activist was. According to the accused, he was "misinformed about Hanul's identity" and received the weapon from his customers.

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