The Central District Court of Mykolaiv in absentia found the former head of Kherson’s “Northern Correctional Colony No. 90”, Yevhen Soboliev, guilty of violating the laws and customs of war. He was accused of organizing the deportation of Ukrainian prisoners in 2022 from the occupied territories of Mykolaiv and Kherson regions to Russia.
This was reported by “IRS-South” citing the court verdict.
The court found that Russian forces on May 28, 2022 captured Snihurivka Correctional Colony No. 5 in Mykolaiv region. On Soboliev’s orders, 97 people were illegally deported, of whom 95 were convicted by Ukrainian courts.
During April–May 2022 the occupiers seized several other colonies and pre-trial detention centers in Kherson region, including “Daryivska Correctional Colony No. 10”, Kherson SIZO, “Holoprystan Correctional Colony No. 7” and “Northern Colony No. 90”. The deported prisoners were transported first to Holoprystan colony, and then to Russia.
During the deportation witnesses described the conditions: prisoners were beaten, had their arms and legs broken, cells were searched, and valuables were taken. Some were kept in overcrowded rooms with people suffering from active tuberculosis, and one convict was buried on the colony’s grounds after his death.
According to witnesses, the deportation involved Russian special forces, the Russian National Guard (Rosgvardiya), and other Russian military units. The occupiers also used violence against local colony staff and civilians.
As a result the court handed Soboliev an in absentia sentence of 12 years imprisonment. Taking into account previous sentences by other courts, the final punishment is life imprisonment with confiscation of all property and deprivation of the special rank “Major of the Internal Service”.
This is the third court verdict for Soboliev.
Yevhen Soboliev is the former head of Colony No. 90 in Kherson. He is wanted in absentia and has two convictions by Ukrainian authorities.
Earlier the court gave Soboliev 13 years in prison in absentia in one case and life imprisonment in another.
In total the man was involved in the deportation of more than 1,700 inmates. Russian occupiers moved into the inmates’ places in the detention facilities.
Soboliev also forced other prisoners to repair their equipment, and medical staff of one of the colonies to treat the Russians themselves.