Murder of volunteer fighter from "Freedom" VFTC Shcherbyna: shooter sentenced to 13 years in prison, two accomplices to 3 years in prison
On 12 November 2024, the Holosiivskyi District Court of Kyiv announced the verdict against three young men in the case of the fatal attack on Oleksii Shcherbyna, a volunteer fighter of the Svoboda VFTC (Volunteer Formation of Territorial Community).
According to Censor.NET, this was reported by watchers.media
Details of the crime
The tragedy occurred in October 2022 in the courtyard of an apartment building in Kyiv. According to the investigation, the victim, Shcherbyna, who was driving a Hyundai, and the driver of a Lexus had a conflict over the priority of passage. During the argument, the Lexus passengers beat the victim. After that, the driver of the luxury car shot Shcherbyna and fled.
Leonid Ihnatenko and Ihor Kotyrlo are accused of hooliganism with firearms (Part 4 of Article 296 of the Criminal Code). While the shooter, Vyacheslav Viltsaniuk, is charged with murder (Part 2 of Article 115 of the Criminal Code), believing that he fired the fatal shot.
During the trial on the merits, the defendants' lawyers put forward a version that their clients were allegedly defending themselves against Shcherbyna, not attacking him. However, the attackers fled the scene, did not provide the victim with medical aid after the shooting, and did not call an ambulance.
Announcement of the verdict
The announcement of the verdict was delayed due to the delay in the delivery of the defendants from the pre-trial detention center. The hearing was scheduled to start at 11:00 a.m., but in fact, the session began at 1:50 p.m.
After leaving the courtroom, the judges announced their decision: to find all three guilty.
The punishment imposed by the court on the defendants:
- Viacheslav Viltsaniuk was sentenced to 13 years in prison;
- Ihor Kotyrl was sentenced to 3 years behind bars;
- Leonid Ihnatenko was sentenced to 3 years in prison.
It is noted that earlier in the court debate, the prosecutor's office requested that Viltsaniuk be sentenced to 15 years in prison, Kotyrlo to 8 years behind bars, and Ihnatenko to 7 years in prison.
The defendants and their lawyers wanted an acquittal.
As a reminder, on 14 August 2023, the Holosiivskyi District Court of Kyiv set bail at UAH 805 thousand for 2 defendants: Kotyrlo and Ihnatenko. The court thus gave them the opportunity to be released from custody, and they took advantage of it by paying the bail.
The case of the murder of volunteer Shcherbyna
In October 2022, it was reported that Oleksii Shcherbyna, a volunteer fighter of the Svoboda VFTC, was killed in Kyiv.
The suspects in the murder of Svoboda volunteer Oleksii Shcherbyna were sent to a pre-trial detention centre without bail. One of the suspects is charged with 'premeditated murder', the other two with 'hooliganism'.
In August 2023, the court reduced the preventive measure for two suspects.
However, by an appeal decision, on 7 September, both defendants were sent back to the pre-trial detention centre.
