The director general of the Dnipro Railway Switch Plant, Serhii Taranenko, who is a key prosecution witness against Member of Parliament Yaroslav Dubnevych in the case of embezzlement of Ukrzaliznytsia funds, was beaten and had his arm broken during detention.
This is evidenced by the video broadcast of the High Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine (HACC) session, the Ukrainian News agency reports.
The incident, which happened back in January 2019, became known on July 9 during the preparatory court session of the High Anti-Corruption Court.
Recall, according to the version of the investigation, during the period of December 2015 - March 2017, the MP organized the procurement by the Ukrzaliznytsia PJSC of railway switch products at inflated prices with the involvement of controlled intermediary enterprises, among which was the Dnipro Railway Switch Plant. According to the National Anti-Corruption Bureau, this is how the funds of the Production Support Center branch of Ukrzaliznytsia in the amount of about UAH 93.27 million were seized.
Taranenko's defense attorney Ihor Zbihlei stated the illegality of the client's detention by the NACB detectives, which took place with the participation of employees of the Bureau's Special Operations Department and was accompanied by violence and the use of special equipment.
This story deserves special attention in terms of the attitude of anti-corruption bodies to human rights, the lawyer is convinced. He revealed some circumstances surrounding the detention of the head of one of the largest manufacturing enterprises in Ukraine.
"Until January 2019, Serhii Dmytrovych (Taranenko - Ed.) was in the procedural status of a witness. He cooperated with the investigation, provided testimony and documents as one of the heads of the joint-stock company. However, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau decided on January 15, 2019 at six in the morning to detain him. There was no procedural or other need to detain a person who did not have the status of a suspect and was not wanted, especially with the use of special means by the Special Operations Department of the NACB," said the lawyer.
During the detention, the witness was beaten and his arm was broken.
"He was not even able to sign the report. And the requests to provide medical assistance or to be taken to the hospital were ignored. Later, the conclusions of two forensic medical examinations confirmed the infliction of moderate severity of bodily injuries in a cause-and-effect relationship with the actions of the law enforcement officers. Information under this fact was entered to the Unified Register of Pretrial Investigations," the lawyer noted.
At the same time, according to him, the criminal proceedings on the abuse of official powers by the NACB employees, despite the obviousness of the situation and the availability of sufficient evidence, are still at the stage of pre-trial investigation at the State Bureau of Investigation. In this situation, the victim can only complain about failure to meet reasonable deadlines.
In this regard, attorney Zbihlei drew attention to the difference in approaches to the investigation of criminal cases against citizens and law enforcement officers.
"The state talks about improper procedural behavior of a person and applies measures of procedural coercion to them. At the same time, for 5.5 years it has not been able to assess the actions of the NACB employees," he explained.
Taranenko began his career in 1977 as a locksmith at the Kryvorizhstal metallurgical plant. In 1988, he founded an industrial construction company engaged in the construction and repair of access railway tracks.
He put forward his candidacy for the position of the head of the Dnipro Railway Switch Plant and in February 1999 was elected to the position of the chairman of the board - director general of the plant. In three years, he brought the company to the level of a national leader in the development, production and supply of railway switch products for Ukrzaliznytsia.
Taranenko is a candidate of technical sciences (dissertation was devoted to the improvement of manufacturing technologies and designs of domestic switchgear), an academician of the Transport Academy of Ukraine. He was awarded the Order of Merit of the third (2004), second (2012) and first (2015) degrees, as well as the Certificate of Honor of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (2016). He is an honored worker of the industry of Ukraine (2009).
Who we are: About us, Contacts. How we write news and our principles: Editorial code. We did our best. If you found this valuable – please support us.
To request a correction, please send an email.