SBU charges five Russian paratroopers who shot at car, killed civilian during Bucha occupation
Read NV on Google
Ukraine's SBU security service has identified five Russian war crime suspects thought to have been involved in the mass killings of civilians in Kyiv Oblast during the Russian military occupation of the town of Bucha, the SBU reported on Telegram on Aug. 23.
All suspects are members of the Russian Armed Forces’ 98th Airborne Division.
The SBU said that in early March 2022, Senior Lieutenant Nikolay Simov ordered his subordinates to open fire on a civilian car with a civilian resident of Kyiv inside. This occurred on a road near the village of Zdvyzhivka in the Bucha district as the driver was delivering essential goods to his friends under occupation. The 33-year-old Kyiv resident died at the scene of the attack.
In an attempt to conceal the crime, the Russian military buried the victim’s body in a nearby forest. However, Ukrainian law enforcement officers located the body, conducted a forensic examination, and identified the deceased.
According to the SBU, Simov held the position of Deputy Commander of the 7th Platoon of the 3rd Battalion of the 331st Parachute Regiment, part of the 98th Airborne Division of the Russian Armed Forces.
The SBU also identified the subordinates under Simov’s command from the 2nd Platoon who directly shot at the civilian car as:
· Sergeant Ilya Astakhov — Deputy Platoon Commander;
· Sergeant Andrey Dvoretsky — Squad Leader;
· Corporal Ruslan Kharitonov — Gunner-Operator;
· Private Oleg Bakhmisov — Rifleman.
All five defendants were charged with violation of the laws and customs of war, combined with premeditated murder (Part 2 of Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).
Comprehensive measures are currently underway to establish the location of the identified war criminals and bring them to justice. It is also noted that there is an ongoing investigation regarding the possible death of Simov during the war in Ukraine. However, the SBU emphasizes that his death is not a reason to stop the criminal investigation, which involves other participants.
Russian troops entered Bucha in the first days of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. After the Russian forces fled Kyiv Oblast at the end of March 2022, the world witnessed the results of their atrocities, which left hundreds of people dead. Mass graves containing the bodies of civilians tortured and killed by Russians were discovered in Bucha, Irpin, and scores of bodies were found lying along the Zhytomyr highway.
On April 14, the Verkhovna Rada declared the actions of Russia and its army as genocide against the Ukrainian people.
The military war may be swinging in our favor, but the information war continues.
Just as an army needs soldiers, so does a free society need its journalists to ensure that people have access to honest, trustworthy voices to understand the world around them.
For the past five years, The New Voice of Ukraine has been working tirelessly to push back against Russian narratives and defend democracy. But we cannot do it alone.
Please consider supporting us on Patreon for just $5 a month – your donation does directly to supporting journalists and ensuring that this front of the infowar says solid and defended.
Thank you.
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Google News
