The Department for investigation of crimes connected with the use of prohibited means and methods of warfare of the Investigative Committee’s Head Office has discovered instances of shelling civilian population by the Ukrainian army and identified more soldiers involved in them.
According to investigators, from November 2016 to January 2017, commander of the 79th separate airmobile brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Colonel Aleksei Shandar, second in command of the 72nd separate mechanized brigade Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Samarsky and other people from the Ukrainian Army and National Guard shelled civilian infrastructure in Donetsk Region. Following knowingly criminal orders of the high-ranking officials from the Ukraine’s Defense Ministry, they fired heavy artillery weapons on non-military targets. 4 civilians, including 2 minors, were wounded, more than 70 homes and other civilian buildings were damaged in the shelling.
As was established, from 7 to 15 February 2017, Aleksander Samarsky and other persons from the Ukrainian Armed Forces and National Guard fired heavy artillery weapons on civilian infrastructure in the towns of Donetsk and Dokuchayevsk and Novoazovsk District of Donetsk region. 1 civilian was killed, more than 14 homes and other civilian buildings were destroyed or damaged.
Shandar and Samarsky are now under investigation into the use of prohibited means and methods of warfare under Part 1 of Article 356 of the RF Penal Code.
The Investigative Committee is investigating the said crimes guided by both international and Russian laws which provide for prosecuting foreign citizens who have committed crimes outside beyond the borders of our country if they have not been punished for them. Such crimes have no statute of limitations. Our investigators will take every possible step to sooner or later bring to justice those who committed the crimes against civilian population and those who gave orders.
Acting Head of Media Relations S.L. Petrenko
PDF version 
DOC version
