23 December 2021, Thursday, 14:54 212

SSU Serves PMC Wagner Head Utkin With Charge Papers On Encroachment On Territorial Integrity Of Ukraine

HELP UKRAINIAN NEWS

Даша Зубкова

The Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) has served the head of Wagner private military campaign (PMC), Russian officer of the Main Intelligence Directorate, Dmitry Utkin, with charge papers on encroaching on the territorial integrity of Ukraine.

Ukrainian News Agency learned this from a law enforcement source.

"The suspicion was served to Utkin," the source said.

He did not report any other information.

At the same time, according to the SSU press service, which does not name the suspect, the head of Wagner Russian private military company is involved in encroaching on the territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine, as well as in the conduct of an aggressive war.

The SSU notes that the suspect is a Russian citizen who heads a PMC to carry out covert military operations of the Russian Federation.

It was established that in the period from July 2014 to March 2015, he was in the temporarily occupied territory of Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

Moreover, he acted by prior agreement with officials of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation and under their control.

The man commanded the subordinate units of the Wagner PMC militants, who, together with units of the regular troops of the Russian Federation and illegal armed formations, fought against the Armed Forces.

The facts of intensive shelling by Wagner's militants of Ukrainian positions in the Debaltseve direction have been documented.

According to the data received, in these battles, the PMC members suffered heavy losses due to the repulse by the units of the Armed Forces.

According to the investigation, during his stay in the temporarily occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, the leader of the enemy group coordinated his actions with the former commander of the Second Army Corps of the Russian Federation.

Based on the evidence of illegal activity, he is suspected of committing crimes under: Part 3 of Article 110 (encroachment on the territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine), Part 5 of Article 27, Part 2 of Article 28, Part 2 of Article 437 (complicity in the conduct of an aggressive war) of the Criminal Code.

A pre-trial investigation is currently underway.

The issue of putting the suspect on the international wanted list is being resolved to bring him to criminal responsibility for crimes against the state security of Ukraine.

Measures to expose and document offenses were carried out by employees of the Main Investigation Directorate of the SSU under the procedural guidance of the Prosecutor General's Office.

As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, the Security Service of Ukraine said that the head of Wagner private military company Dmitry Utkin removed his relatives from Ukraine in 2016.

The State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) states it has not served charge papers to anyone in the cases the bureau is investigating regarding the disruption of a special operation to detain members of Wagner private military company.