The court found former Berkut member Borys Arefiev guilty in the case of the Berkut ambush and attack on protesters in Kryposny Lane in Kyiv in January 2014 during the Maidan protests.
The Boryspil City and District Court made such a decision on Friday, September 15, reports WatchersMedia.
As reported, Borys Arefiev, a police officer of the 2nd company of Kyiv “Berkut”, is accused in the case of the ambush on “Avtomaidan” on the night of January 22-23, 2014. The ambush was designed and arranged by the “Berkuta” unit, operational comrades-in-arms of the militia and “titushki”.
Then “Berkut” blocked the movement of the yellow bus (in which there were activists) and forcefully pulled out everyone who was inside.
“False information and evidence artificially created by Arefiev were used in order to fabricate cases and inform about suspicions of illegally detained during the ambush of protesters”– said the message.
The demonstrators were beaten, then detained, and then taken to the Obolon district and handed over to investigators for criminal prosecution for their alleged involvement in hooliganism.
In this case Arefieva is accused of:
- abuse of power by prior conspiracy,
- compiling and entering false information into an official document
- false testimony of witnesses combined with artificial creation of evidence
The court found Arefiev guilty on all charges and sentenced him to 7 years in prison (with a 3-year disqualification from holding positions in law enforcement agencies). The sentence was passed in absentia, because Arefiev is wanted.
We will remind, in the Maidan cases, three “aunties” will be tried for the murders of an activist and a journalist. It was also reported that the court sentenced two Kharkiv residents in absentia for kidnapping and torture during the Maidan.
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Source: Maidan cases: the court sentenced ex-Berkut resident Arefiev
