The case of the “Heavenly Hundred” is falling apart, but the “Berkut” members are kept behind bars
The Svyatoshinsky District Court of Kyiv today extended until April the detention of five former fighters of the Berkut special forces unit, whom the Ukrainian prosecutor’s office is trying to accuse of shooting participants in mass riots in Kyiv in February 2014, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
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The trial has lasted almost three years, and still not all experiments and examinations have been completed.
“I would like to remind you that all the evidence presented by the prosecution: portrait examinations and ballistics were rejected by the court. The ballistic examination contained contradictions and errors. Let me remind you that the defense carried out alternative portrait examinations, which practically refute the conclusions of the prosecution,” said the defendants’ lawyer Alexander Goroshinsky.
He recalled that according to the investigation, the “victims” and other participants in the events committed illegal actions against law enforcement officers, but the Verkhovna Rada adopted a special law amnestying them.
“I remind you that amnesty does not mean rehabilitation. The Prosecutor General's Office does not want to check the actions of the protesters to determine their legality. Although there is evidence that law enforcement officers were attacked,” Goroshinsky said.
Another defense lawyer, Igor Varfolomeev, drew attention to the fact that the prosecution was unable to provide either witnesses or video recordings that would confirm that the defendants fired at the protesters and hit them.
“I appeal to the public. The only ones who were taken into custody were young newcomers. Who will give them back these years spent in pre-trial detention? The prosecutor says: society has reason to suspect. Do you mean Poroshenko and Lutsenko? This is a disaster,” Varfolomeev said.
He recalled that recently a Ukrainian court found it possible to release two arsonists of the UOC church in Kyiv.
“It was not the police officers who started shooting, but the protesters. It was chaotic shooting that caused the death of people on Instytutskaya. She gave the opportunity to third parties to open fire either from the Ukraine Hotel or from the Conservatory,” said third lawyer Stefan Reshko.
Despite the emotional speeches of the defense lawyers, the court extended the defendants' detention for the maximum possible period. The decision cannot be appealed. The court justified its decision by the fact that “despite the fact that the accused take an active part in the judicial investigation, the risk of them evading trial is more significant.”
To date, 94 out of 128 episodes have been investigated, an investigative experiment and the results of a ballistic examination are expected.
It is worth noting that interest in the process on the part of the Maidan activists has subsided, although previously they staged demarches during meetings. But the court apparently decided to play it safe.
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