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The Directorate for the investigating crimes connected with the use of prohibited means and methods of warfare of the Russia’s Investigative Committee has charged Ukrainian citizen Nadezhda Savchenko with a crime under part 5 of article 33, paragraphs “a”, “b”, “f”, “g” and “k” of part 2 of article 105 (complicity in murder of two or more people in connection with their professional activity by a generally dangerous way motivated by political hate committed by a group of people). At the request of investigators a court ruled to remand Savchenko in custody pending the trial.

It is known that Savchenko serves in the Ukrainian Armed Forces as a gunlayer of Mi-24 helicopter. According to the investigators, during military actions near Luhansk in June, Savchenko joined Aidar battalion. Having learned the coordinates of the position of Russian VGTRK journalists and other civilians near Luhansk, she passed the information to militants. After that it was those coordinates that were mortared killing VGTRK journalists Igor Kornelyuk and Anton Voloshin.

As for the Savchenko’s detention, it has been found that she crossed the Russian border without documents disguised as a refugee. She was detained in one of the townships by officers to check her identity. After that they found that she was a suspect in the investigation into murder of Russian journalists. It is very important to say that the apprehension was carried out strictly under the Russian laws. The charges against Savchenko were pressed in the presence of a lawyer and an interpreter and the arrest was immediately reported to the Ukrainian Embassy in the Russian Federation. At present Savchenko is kept in a pretrial detention center. During the probe the investigators are going to ascertain her aim in Russia.

We have warned multiple times that everybody – perpetrators and those who give orders, will have to answer for the military crimes in Ukraine. By the way, a Russian court has today arrested in absentia Arsen Avakov, who like his fellow Igor Kolomoysky are charged with organization of murders, use of prohibited means and methods of warfare, obstruction of professional activity of journalists and death of Russian journalists in southeast Ukraine.

Head of Media Relations                                                                                                    V.I. Markin