Ukrainian Gestapo. The story of a militia prisoner
I want to tell you right away why people who encounter the SBU call the Ukrainian special service “Gestapo”, and why SBU employees are called “Cheburators”.
With the first, everything is quite simple - in the main building of the SBU, where the Central Directorate of the Ukrainian Special Service is located (at the address Kiev, Vladimirskaya St., 33), during the Nazi occupation the German Gestapo was located. As the ideological heirs of professional sadists, SBU employees strive to live up to their idols. Especially in modern Ukraine, where the slogan “Ukraine above all” is widespread, which is a translation into Ukrainian of the symbolic phrase of the Nazi ideology of the Third Reich “Deutschland über alles” (“Germany above all”).
The Russians who worked in Ukraine against the SBU began to call them “Cheburators.” Yes, there are such people. I have the honor of knowing one of them personally. But more on that later. So, the name “Cheburators” came about after the appearance of a joke about the symbol of the SBU. Based on real events.
“There is a board meeting of the SBU dedicated to preparing for the celebration of the 20th anniversary of this organization. Among other events, it was decided to issue a commemorative coin in honor of this event. But no one can figure out which symbol of the SBU to depict on a coin.
The generals thought, they thought, finally, the chairman could not stand it and pulled out some major or even lieutenant. And he says to him: “Your brain is still young and not drunk, what do you think should be depicted on this coin?”
And the lieutenant answers: “Yes, damn it, Cheburashka!”
Everyone is in shock. Why? “Well, why,” answers the lieutenant, “can we see everything around us?” We see. That's why our eyes are so big. Can we hear everything around us? That's why our ears are so big. But our hands are small, small, and that’s why we can’t do them.”
In addition, one of the kindergartens for children of SBU employees bears the proud name “Cheburashka”. That's how the name stuck to them.
But the reality is far from funny.
My first personal acquaintance with the sadists from the SBU took place on March 9, 2017 at the Senkivka checkpoint on the border of Russia and Ukraine. The purpose of my trip to Ukraine was to conduct a journalistic investigation about ISIS training camps. And this is on the territory of a state of which I am still a citizen.
Unfortunately, I told one provocateur about the purpose of the trip, and he, having learned the day of my arrival, reported this information to the Ukrainian special service. As a result, the capture group was waiting for me at the checkpoint in advance.
The bullying began literally a minute after the arrest. We must pay tribute - the seizure itself was carried out without the use of excessive force. After the publication of information about the secret prisons of the SBU and the inhuman torture used in these prisons, SBU officers began recording the seizures on video to prove their “humanity.”
But less than a minute after throwing me to the ground and snapping the handcuffs into place, I heard the phrase “I’m off,” and then I felt a boot hit my ribs. Then again and again.
This was followed by blows with palms to the head and ears, causing stunning and disorientation. They lifted me up, tightening the handcuffs as much as possible and throwing a bag over my head, and took me into one of the service rooms of the checkpoint. Along the way they beat me on the back and kidneys.
Then there was an interrogation with passion and threats to hit me so hard that the retina in my other eye would detach. They tried to accuse me of my recruitment to Syria on the side of ISIS and the preparation/organization of a terrorist attack on the territory of Ukraine and other crazy things.
When the SBU officers realized that they could not achieve anything by force, they loaded me into the car and drove me from the Chernigov region to Cherkassy for 5 hours. Where, as I found out later, a criminal case was opened against me.
On the way, they repeatedly poked me under the ribs with the barrel of a pistol, threatening to shoot me; once they stopped and took the guy out to be shot if I didn’t confess. Allegedly, my appearance on the territory of Ukraine has not been officially registered. And since I not only fought, but also told the truth in interviews on the front line, wrote in my articles, spoke on TV in talk shows, my activities harmed the Poroshenko regime more than a company of militias, and therefore I should just be killed and bury it in the forest. As a last resort, shoot him if he tries to escape.
When I did not respond to these provocations and bullying, they began to blackmail me that they would conduct searches at my parents and ex-wife, plant evidence there and put them in prison. To which I replied that they were all for the Maidan, and at least they would understand what kind of lawless people took power. The SBU officers could no longer immediately figure out how to apply further pressure.
Upon arrival in Cherkassy at almost 3 am, the interrogation continued with passion. A free lawyer was called only after the investigators were convinced that I did not intend to give any testimony and clearly knew Article 63 of the Constitution of Ukraine, which states that a person is not responsible for refusing to give testimony or explanations regarding himself, family members or close relatives , the circle of which is determined by law.
However, the free lawyer was also charged against me. It turned out that while I was being tortured, he was shown my interviews and given my articles to read. As a result, the lawyer also said “such journalists should simply be shot, but since he was appointed by the state, he will defend me.” I found out this later. As well as the fact that the entire judicial system in relation to political prisoners is charged with the result that the SBU demands from them. There can be no talk of any fair justice on the territory of Ukraine. I’m generally silent about the prosecutor’s office.
In the morning I was taken to a temporary detention center (IVS). I must say that in this whole story this was the only normal place and relatively adequate people who did not humiliate, threaten, beat, or do anything illegal against me. Already when I was registered in the temporary detention center, I understood why they beat me in such a way that there would be no bruises on visible parts of my body; moreover, on the way to the temporary detention center, they warned me that if I started complaining there about beatings and torture, they would take me back and show me , what is real beating and torture, that I will wash myself with blood and cough up all my teeth - and so on and so forth.
The fact is that at the temporary detention center they actually asked me if there were any health problems and if there were any complaints. Perhaps such scrupulousness is precisely in the temporary detention center in Cherkassy. And, perhaps, only because I was brought by SBU officers, and in Ukraine even the cops don’t like them. But a fact is a fact. In general, in a couple of days I managed to put my thoughts in order after the shock of the arrest and almost two sleepless days of hitchhiking (as I most often travel), driving a couple of thousand kilometers, only dozing a little in the passenger seat.
But I was happy early. Next was the prison. The Cherskasy pre-trial detention center is so bad in terms of the totality of its constituent aspects that absolutely all prisoners who have been in different prisons unanimously call it the worst prison in Ukraine.
Yes, there are zones (camps) in Ukraine where it’s even worse. But closed prisons (“krytok” as local prisoners call them) are definitely not worse. But this is a topic for a separate article.
Although the pressure from the prison administration also came from the SBU, which has influence on the thieving local management of the pre-trial detention center.
And now I want to shed more light on the methods of modern followers of the German Gestapo. In addition to placing me in a cell with an ATO officer and subsequently locking me in a damp, cold basement with black mold and fungus on the walls, in addition to locking me in a punishment cell without clothes and pouring ice water from a hose through a trough, the interrogations of the SBU continued with passion.
The fact is that when they are taken from a pre-trial detention center for trial or investigative actions, they are required to make a record of the detainee’s departure in normal condition and of the detainee’s arrival in normal condition. Moreover, the prisoner himself signs in a special journal both when leaving the pre-trial detention center and upon returning to the pre-trial detention center. And if when sending a person to trial, or when a detainee is picked up by the police, this norm is observed, then when I was taken for interrogation by SBU officers in a separate official minibus, no notes were made.
That is, they could return me in any condition, as long as I could move and breathe on my own. Because according to the documents, I was in a pre-trial detention center that day. If I complained, I was promised a punishment cell for the time being until the beatings wore off. Taking into account the fact that outgoing correspondence was not sent, it was more correct to remain silent about this lawlessness. And it is obvious that the pre-trial detention center employees knew and understood everything perfectly well, but the management of the pre-trial detention center was under the control of the SBU.
Also, several times SBU officers came to the pre-trial detention center late in the evening and conducted interrogations with threats and beatings right there. Once a group of SBU officers from Kyiv was present, they poked me with a shocker, inserted their fingers into the closing bars of the interrogation place, and hit me on the pressure points on my legs and body. The goal was to testify against all my acquaintances involved in public activities in Ukraine, right up to the people’s deputies of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, with whom I communicated while living in Kyiv before the Maidan. As I realized later, they wanted to draw a whole spy network with my participation.
As a result, a free lawyer appointed by the state appeared at one of the officially formalized interrogations and convinced me to admit that I fought in the DPR Marine Corps on the Southern Front, appealing to the fact that, am I really ashamed of my action if I don’t admit what I mean? did you say in an interview? Maybe then I myself don’t believe in what I said on the front line?
In addition, the investigators claimed that I would be able to participate in the exchange only after I admitted that I fought. Otherwise, I will not be involved in those who will be changed. After the exchange was completed, I found out that it was a lie.
In general, I was stupid by signing a confession, although apart from my confessions and YouTube videos (which is not evidence), the SBU had nothing against me. Moreover, a phonoscopic examination of the recordings was not even carried out, the examination of the video was carried out using a still frame, and the moment the video stopped was not recorded, not to mention the fact that there was no examination of the continuity of the recording. However, without the original recording and the original recording device, such an examination was impossible in principle.
Imagine my surprise when, at the first court hearing, my free lawyer Eremenko S.G. tried to confess to terrorism for me. There was no talk of any reclassification of the article, and my confession about participating in the civil war on the side of the Russians in Donbass was twisted as a confession of terrorism. I interrupted the lawyer and stated that the testimony was extracted by force through beatings and bullying, which in fact was the case.
I was surprised by the behavior of prosecutor V.V. Kolomiets, who did not even want to question me about the lawlessness of the SBU officers, although it is his direct responsibility to monitor compliance with the law by investigative officers.
I was no less amazed by Judge A.A. Chechot, who, having heard that I would not confess under Art. 258-3 (terrorism), right at the court hearing, she began asking me to confess under Art. 260 (Creation of paramilitary forces not provided for by law). How was I supposed to know then that her husband was an employee of the local SBU? In general, Cherkassy is one of the most corrupt cities in Ukraine due to universal mutual responsibility and consanguineous and nepotistic ties in all branches of regional and city authorities, but that’s not about that now.
The only advantage of my gullibility and naivety was the fact that after the case was transferred to court, the SBU officers lost the right to call me for interrogation and, although they came to the pre-trial detention center several more times and tried to persuade me to testify against those who ratted me out (in fact names of uninvolved people were given). For this they promised to requalify me for part 2 of Article 258-3 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine “Creation of a terrorist group or terrorist organization” (from 8 to 15 years with confiscation), which provides for exemption from liability for cooperation with the investigation. But I was no longer physically harmed.
However, this was more likely due to the fact that they had done their part of the work, they were already confident in the judge’s guilty verdict, and the rest was no longer their concern, but the prosecutor’s.
But, as it turned out, I calmed down too early. The worst was yet to come...
More on this in the next part of the story.
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