In Kherson, a trial has begun of 44-year-old Serhiy Budnyk from Yasynuvata, Donetsk region, a former sanitary instructor of the DPR. He is accused of cruel treatment of civilians and of abducting and torturing a resident of the village of Mylove during the temporary occupation.
This was reported by correspondents of the Center for Journalistic Investigations.
According to the investigation, on April 4, 2022, militants stopped the victim’s car at a checkpoint in the center of the village and forced him to go to the commandant’s office in the house of culture. There, Serhiy Budnyk beat the man several times with his hands, feet and the butt of a rifle, threatened to kill him and held him in a basement.
It is reported that on the night of April 5 Budnyk carried out his commander’s order and continued the torture using a metal helmet, which continued daily until the morning of April 7, when the victim was released.
He is charged under Part 1 of Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – cruel treatment of the civilian population, as well as other violations of the laws and customs of war.
The trial is being held in absentia, since the accused is in temporarily occupied territory and there is no contact with him. At the hearing the court examined written evidence, an identification protocol, the testimony of the victim and eyewitnesses.
Before the war, Budnyk was the director of the Yasynuvata Machine-Building Plant and studied at the Yaroslav Mudryi Kharkiv National University of Law. After the occupation of Yasynuvata he remained in leadership positions and attended events in support of “DPR”.
Witnesses confirm that Budnyk conducted so-called filtration interrogations of local residents to collect information about cooperation with the Ukrainian defense forces, using physical and psychological violence.
The next court hearing is scheduled for April 9, during which the victim and witnesses are to be questioned, and additional written evidence will be examined.
Earlier it was reported that Yuriy Ogurtsov with the call sign “Vulkan”, who after the full-scale Russian invasion took part in the torture of civilians in occupied Kherson region, received a sentence in absentia for war crimes.