(MENAFN- UkrinForm) The Prosecutor's General Office of Ukraine reported this on its websit, according to Ukrinform.

Prosecutors from the Prosecutor General's Office supported the public prosecution in court and proved the key role of the former Kyiv Berkut commander in organizing the destruction of evidence crucial to establishing the circumstances of the tragic events of February 20, 2014, in central Kyiv.

The investigation established that the convicted official, abusing his position, facilitated the concealment of traces of serious crimes against participants of the protest movement. In particular, he organized the destruction of official documents and firearms used to shoot protesters.

According to the case materials, 24 AKMS assault rifles, a Dragunov sniper rifle, three Fort-500 shotguns, and a Fort-12 shotgun were removed from the regiment's base. The weapons were illegally destroyed: they were cut into pieces, serial numbers were removed, and some fragments were dumped into the Vita River, while others were buried along its banks. These actions were intended to hide the murder weapons and prevent the further identification of firearms used in the shootings.

In addition, the defendant took possession of highly important service documents of the unit, which subsequently disappeared. This significantly complicated efforts to identify the direct perpetrators of the shootings and the weapons assigned to them.

He was found guilty of abuse of power by a law enforcement officer, illegal possession of firearms, ammunition, and explosives, illegal manufacture and alteration of weapons, removal of serial markings, and misappropriation of important official documents.

The court sentenced him in absentia to ten years of imprisonment and ordered the recovery of nearly UAH 680,000 in damages for the state.

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In 2023, prosecutors also secured a guilty verdict against an accomplice, who had directly destroyed and concealed the weapons used to shoot protesters on February 20, 2014. He too was convicted in absentia and sentenced to ten years in prison, with the verdict already in force.

As reported earlier, former Kyiv Berkut commander Serhiy Kusiuk, who served as deputy regiment commander and took part in violent crackdowns, including the storming of Euromaidan anti-government protests in December 2013, fled to Russia, where he later received the rank of colonel in the Russian National Guard (Rosgvardiya).

Photo: pexels

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