Russian journalist was arrested following a complaint from Yanukovych's security guard
Yalta journalist Sergei Sardyko claims that he was arrested after a complaint from a former security officer of Viktor Yanukovych. Sardyko spoke about the incident on the pages of the Yalta newspaper he edited.
Sardyko claims that he paid for the uncomfortable questions and video filming, which he began when he met city hall official Stanislav Shaportov on the Yalta embankment, from whom he demanded an explanation of why illegal street trading was flourishing in the resort capital.
“Why is it not on Red Square in Moscow or on Palace Square in St. Petersburg, but in Yalta it is considered the norm? Approaching Shaportov, he began to ask him questions, he answered. There was no direct aggression on my part,” says Sardyko.
However, the journalist claims, the official’s companions did not like his persistence. In one of them he identified Vladimir Krivenko, director of UK Diplomat LLC.
“The companions of the Yalta official showed aggression. Shaportov’s comrades, apparently, did not like the fact that the journalist was videotaping the conversation and distracting their friend from the evening promenade. At some point, Shaportov’s companion pushed me with his shoulder, and did it as if by accident. The shock caused the camera to move a little. Krivenko later stated in court that the journalist allegedly “blocked his path,” the journalist said.
“For the next nine days, no one remembered the meeting with Shaportov.
Only on November 16th I was called to the police to give an explanation about this incident. It turned out that on November 14th, the manager of the luxury apartment complex “Diplomat” in Oreanda, Vladimir Krivenko, wrote a statement to the police, indicating that I allegedly used obscene language in a public place...
This statement, together with my explanations, formed the basis of the administrative protocol under Part 1 of Article 20.1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of Russia - “petty hooliganism.” The court hearing in this case took place on November 19.
I’ll say right away: there was no swearing on my part, the whole city knows that as a graduate of the Russian department of the philological department of Simferopol University in 1991, I never use obscene language in my speech. All this was a provocation,” the journalist assures.
However, the court found him guilty, since at the hearing three witnesses claimed that Sardyko allowed himself obscene statements.
“At the trial, Krivenko did not hide the fact that he had known Shaportov for a long time and was on friendly terms with him. Until 2014, two generals worked in the state security of Ukraine in Crimea and ensured the security of Yanukovych. I believe that they used the arrest to put pressure on me as a journalist who published critical materials,” says Sardyko.
Since the temporary detention center in Yalta is closed for repairs, the convict was taken to serve his arrest in the city of Saki.
“The conditions in the isolation cell were tolerable. Food is supplied from a cafe located next to the temporary detention facility. At my request, the temporary detention facility staff provided me with the opportunity to serve my sentence in solitary confinement. They gave me paper and a pen, so I could prepare the next issue of the Yalta newspaper for publication, which I did for all three days with breaks for reading.
There is a rich library there, so in three days I read “The History of the City of Glupov” by Saltykov-Shchedrin and “Sevastopol Stories” by Leo Tolstoy. Hygiene is also okay: they provide clean bedding, toothpaste and a brush, and there is the opportunity to take a shower. Moreover, I was surprised that there was no characteristic unpleasant smell in the cells. The ventilation works well,” Sardyko said.
Sardyko intends to challenge the verdict. The meeting will take place on January 11, 2021 at 10.00 in the Supreme Court of Crimea.
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