The degraded SBU failed to hand over the suspicion to Shariy
The information from the SBU that Anatoly Shariy was suspected of high treason was perceived by many as a new round of political repression in Ukraine. There is another opinion: the narrow-minded Ukrainian authorities played too much at the “95th quarter” and shot their own leg, adding points to the famous video blogger. On Tuesday, a new joke even appeared that the SBU was the first to make a political bet on Shariy and has already begun working for him.
We talk with Kyiv lawyer Valentin Rybin, a representative of the Shariy Party, about the political persecution that marked 2021 and the trials that have become a disgrace for Zelensky’s government.
“PN”: Valentin, what is already known about the “Shariy case”? Does it exist?
Valentin Rybin: Leaving emotions aside, it is worth noting that in a legal sense, there was no notification of suspicion to Anatoly Shariy. Because the SBU, apparently already in complete degradation from top to bottom, publishes on its website a summons, it is unclear to whom it was handed, it is unclear for what procedural and investigative action. And most importantly: a summons is not a fact of notification of suspicion.
Further: everyone knows that Anatoly Shariy has been abroad for a long time, enjoying the immunity of a political refugee. And the Ukrainian authorities know for sure where he is. Accordingly, the service of suspicion in criminal proceedings must occur in the manner established by the Code of Criminal Procedure. Namely, using international legal assistance. This suspicion, as a document with an order, is sent to the relevant competent authorities and handed over. The fact of service is confirmed, and the criminal prosecution process continues.
Now we see a situation similar to that when the cheap yellow press writes without any confirmation, without references to facts. In the same way, on the official website of the SBU they drew some kind of picture and launched some kind of video.
I looked through it: in fact, it doesn’t cause anything except laughter. The SBU already believes that this video contains evidence of Anatoly’s guilt. And the documents published by them are some kind of piece of the agenda. Luckily it hasn't been printed on toilet paper yet. But I think: this is still to come. They believe that this summons is a notice of suspicion.
For our part, we have already prepared a number of petitions. On Wednesday they will be sent to the SBU in order to force this office to work according to the law. I hope that we will be able to work according to the law and we will receive the appropriate official answer: where, when, at what time Anatoly Shariy was notified of the suspicion. You will see: this will be just another disgrace for the SBU.
“PN”: Why did the SBU need this?
Valentin Rybin: I believe that this outburst against Anatoly Shariy is the beginning of a massive attack on both him and his party, which, no matter what, is rapidly gaining ratings. And more and more people support the position of Anatoly Shariy’s party, which is expressed in simple things: you should never lie, first of all to yourself; you can't steal; you need to live in accordance with the requirements of the law.
The current government is not satisfied with these postulates. And we are witnessing another political massacre in Ukraine. But very low quality. So low that I’m simply surprised at what audience this provocation against Anatoly Shariy is intended for. Who is it intended for, and who will believe in all this?!
“PN”: Why is Sharia’s namesake detained in Dnieper?
Valentin Rybin: We don't yet know what exactly is happening. Today we were one of the first to publish information regarding the detention of Viktor Shariy. It seems to me that this will be one of the imaginary pain points in this process. Because Viktor Shariy has nothing to do with the activities of the party, or with party activists, or with any processes.
A person who, while on the territory of Ukraine, at one time provided a one-time permission to use his last name to register a political party (and this was absolutely legal, these facts have been established), will now most likely be subject to pressure. This is done in order to further use his statements or confessions (which he will now give without lawyers) to create a picture in society: you see, we took a person, and he confessed to everything and agreed with everything.
I have already taken part in such political trials several times: let’s remember Daria Mastikasheva, who was kidnapped and tortured for a day. In the video, she said that she participated in preparations for terrorist attacks. And then, when it turned out that she gave these confessions while in the basement, being beaten and completely humiliated, the SBU suddenly began to backtrack. I think now we will see exactly the same handwriting.
“PN”: Many people had the illusion that political persecution had stopped under Zelensky.
Valentin Rybin: With the arrival of Vladimir Zelensky, many hoped that we would respect freedom of speech standards and stop persecution of dissent. In his election campaign, he clearly showed that he would sacredly honor fundamental human rights and the norms of the Constitution of Ukraine. We thought that this would happen. Zelensky is probably the biggest deception and biggest disappointment of Ukrainians. Because the rating with which he was elected has now turned into nothing. This shows how he used people's trust. It’s sad to realize, but we were deceived once again, and in the lowest and dirtiest way.
I think that political persecution in the country will now only gain momentum. Because the rates constantly need to be raised. And I think that this pseudo-suspicion against Anatoly Shariy, about which representatives of the SBU crowed on the official website, is not even worth a damn and is absolutely unfounded - this is just the first sign in the “cold summer of 21st” and, perhaps, in the “cold summer spring of '21." That is, we will see a lot more...
Following the suspicion of Shariy, the editor-in-chief of the Kyiv propaganda resource “Censor.net” demands that the SBU ban his party.
“PN”: What claims does the SBU have against the Kirovograd activist of the Shariy Party, to whom you were ready to provide legal assistance?
Valentin Rybin: Artem Khazan and I had to go for interrogation at the Kirovograd SBU on the same criminal proceedings, for which today the SBU allegedly reported suspicion to Anatoly Shariy. It turned out that it was the number of this case that was indicated in the summons issued by the SBU.
Having arrived at the scene, we contacted a representative of the SBU. He said that there would be no interrogation because there was no one to conduct it, and that they would contact us in the coming days. But that did not happen. I dare to suggest that those events were connected, among other things, with preparation for today’s low attack against Anatoly Shariy from the SBU. Most likely, they wanted to hold a conversation in Artem and try to find some weak points, perhaps collect some kind of compromising evidence on Anatoly Shariy...
Valentin Rybin and Artem Khazan.
“PN”: You are still participating in the trial, already in the appeal, in the case of Berkut member Andrei Khandrykin, who was acquitted by the court in the summer of 2019.
Valentin Rybin: On Tuesday, a court hearing took place in the case of accusing my client (an employee of the Kharkov special forces “Berkut”) of torturing peaceful protesters. At this meeting, we were already thinking of moving on to debate, since the court quite clearly examined the arguments set out in the appeals of both the prosecutor and the victims.
But the representative of the victims suddenly made a request for the need to summon for questioning the investigator who was interrogating my client in another criminal case as a witness.
Loans absolutely clearly understood that this petition was unfounded, and the evidence obtained as a result of this interrogation could not be used by virtue of Article 97 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Even the prosecutor herself did not support the position of the victims' representatives, which caused them indignation and bewilderment. And I was forced to make a remark and draw the court’s attention to the fact that the representatives of the victims are openly putting pressure on the prosecutor.
The court, however, gave the victims the opportunity to question this investigator on March 24, after which we will be able to move on to judicial debate. I hope (although, in connection with recent events, hopes are already quite timid) that the court will still take into account the arguments that we expressed in the first instance (and in the appellate instance) and will leave the acquittal of Andrei Khandrykin in force.
“PN”: Remind the essence of the matter.
Valentin Rybin: On the night of January 20-21, 2014, several protesters climbed onto the roof of the colonnade of the Dynamo stadium and from there calmly threw various objects, including stones and Molotov cocktails, at a line of internal troops and Berkut special forces officers. As a result, many law enforcement officers received injuries, significant burns (and the video confirms this) and were taken to the hospital.
In the evening, these “protesters,” so to speak, were detained and taken to the police station, where arrest reports were drawn up. And later they were brought to justice for participating in mass riots.
After the victory of the “revolution of dignity”, suspicions against these protesters were lifted, and the cases against them were closed. And they decided that law enforcement officers should be held accountable for detaining “heroes.” Suspicions were brought against employees of the Kharkov Berkut, who were interrogated as witnesses two days later. They showed: yes, indeed, someone was detained at the colonnade (without indicating who exactly; the names of the detainees were not given). However, the victims want to use these interrogation reports as the main evidence that it was my client who detained them and caused them bodily harm.
“PN”: What is happening with your client Victoria Daskalitsa, whom the Kharkov SBU detained on suspicion of treason (Article 111 is becoming popular again)?
Valentin Rybin: “This is practically the same tracing paper that they are now using to bring suspicion against Anatoly Shariy. There are some Telegram channels. My client has nothing to do with them at all. It did not influence the dissemination of information by these Telegram channels, nor the administration.
Vika is the common-law wife of Artem Davydchenko, who took part in the events of May 2 in Odessa, and is now abroad and is being persecuted in Ukraine. And I understand that, trying to somehow offend or get at him, they decided to simply pay attention to his wife.
The most important thing: in these Telegram channels, including Legitimny and others, no information was disseminated that could be perceived as calling for violence, for the overthrow of the state system, as sowing hostility, etc. News information with a certain assessment is distributed there. But personal assessment in information, thank God, is not yet prohibited in the country, although it is under threat.
The same thing is now being thrown at Anatoly Shariy: in his video blogs, he spoke negatively about the authorities, expressed his opinion regarding the Ukrainian events - and therefore he committed high treason. Can you imagine to what level of insanity and legal nihilism Ukraine has sunk?!
I am now quite seriously worried about all the people who will allow themselves to speak out not in line with the official policy of the current government.
Sporadic actions aimed at blocking TV channels or fighting Telegram channels indicate that these figures do not understand what they are dealing with. They do not understand that information can no longer be curbed. Information can only be created. And you can create it by doing. And since the things being done in the state are bad, the information is the same.
Victoria Daskalitsa is guilty only of being the common-law wife of Artem Davydchenko.
“PN”: It turned out that even after posting bail, it’s not so easy for your client to be released, especially on Friday?
Valentin Rybin: “It was a low-grade, but quite common practice of violating human rights. Bail has been posted for the suspect and she needs to be released. And in the territorial department of the judicial administration of the Kharkov region they decided to consult with the SBU officers what needed to be done, and received instructions: not to let go. Accordingly, the issuance of a certificate of payment of the deposit was slowed down. I did not have the opportunity to provide this certificate to the pre-trial detention center.
Well, it’s clear that no one handed over my client to me on Friday, February 5th. Therefore, on Saturday and Sunday she was kept in a pre-trial detention center virtually illegally. Although the deposit was paid on Thursday, and there was already confirmation on Friday. And the judicial administration knew that the money had arrived.
Only on Monday we managed to get a certificate and take our client home safely.
“PN”: Did they create red tape in order to keep the girl in a pre-trial detention center for an extra three days?
Valentin Rybin: This is just purely psychological pressure. She was completely unaware. They simply decided to extend her “pleasure” of staying in places not so distant.
“PN”: At what stage is the trial of SBU Major Fedorchuk now? who killed a resident of Avdeevka?
Valentin Rybin: On February 12, a meeting of the Kramatorsk City Court was held (lawyer Rybin represents the interests of the mother of the murdered Vladimir Eremin. - “PN”). Two witnesses were questioned. One is an unofficial SBU officer, to whom Fedorchuk called on the night of the murder and said that he had detained some separatist drug addict. But the employee said: “I’m tired and sleeping, so call the group leader.”
Thus, the witness confirmed the fact of this call and conversation. Because we have access to telephone connection traffic, which shows that a conversation took place between them.
And a second witness was interrogated, a soldier, a certain Zhuravlev, who was asked the morning after the murder to burn Volodya Eremin’s jacket. He tried to “turn on the perch” at the court hearing, saying that he did not remember that he had burned the jacket, but remembered that he had burned a ball of some rags.
I needed to ask him some questions. As a result, Zhuravlev also confirmed the fact that Major Fedorchuk, soldiers Potapov and Konin drank alcoholic drinks in his room that evening, which Zhuravlev himself did. He confirmed the fact that the next morning it was not he who called Potapov, but Potapov who called him. That is, testimony was obtained confirming the position of witness Potapov, who described in vivid detail how he called Zhuravlev and what he said.
After that, we moved on to studying the physical evidence. The prosecution provided all the material evidence that it uses as evidence of Fedorchuk’s guilt.
The next meeting will take place on March 10. And we will already begin to study the evidence from the defense.
In the Kramatorsk City Court: the trial of a murderer from the SBU.
“PN”: During the hearing, the defense of the accused, defending Fedorchuk, stated that the blood of the murdered Eremin, found in the car and on the stretcher, did not prove that he was there?
Valentin Rybin: Fedorchuk’s defense, as far as I understand, does not have a clear position on this matter. Yes, it cannot be, because the only correct position is to admit one’s guilt and cooperate with the investigation. Because the charge is serious enough for them to build their position on denying the fact that the victim was under the control of the accused.
And this fact is confirmed by the testimony of witnesses, an investigative experiment, the traffic of telephone connections, and most importantly, physical evidence - Eremin’s phone, which was used by the witness Potapov. And witness Potapov clearly indicates how the phone got to him. He clearly says that the phone came to him after the murder. Fedorchuk took this phone from Eremin, who was beaten to death, and gave it to Potapov.
The defense is trying to prove that the blood could have gotten onto the floor of the car and onto the stretcher that was in the car in some other way. But in order to cast doubt on this fact, which the prosecution proves, it is necessary to explain quite convincingly in what other way biological traces and Volodya Eremin’s DNA could have gotten into the car. But we didn't hear this.
“PN”: Is it true that you are going to participate in the majoritarian elections in one of the Donbass constituencies where the mandate to the Verkhovna Rada has become vacant?
Valentin Rybin: Registered as a candidate for people's deputies in the 50th constituency. I will do everything to properly represent the interests of the party and win in this district. In the Krasnoarmeysky City District Court of the Donetsk region, I defended several people. So these places are familiar to me.
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