In Ukraine’s first war crimes trial, the accused 21-year-old Russian soldier faces life in prison. The almost childlike Wadim Sch. confessed as a prisoner of war to killing a 62-year-old civilian on February 28 in the village of Chupakhivka in the Sumy region of northeastern Ukraine. A court in Kiev wants to announce the verdict on Monday (11 am CEST).
The internationally acclaimed case also highlights the brutal actions of the Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin Russian troops sent to Ukraine. In late February, Alexander Schelipow was on his way by bicycle when Vadim Sch. according to evidence, shot him with a Kalashnikov assault rifle. Katerina Shelipova found her husband dead in the street – shot in the head, as she said in court. “He was everything to me. He was my protector.” All this happened just a few meters from the house. She saw the suspect’s car herself.
The defendant shows remorse
Vadim Sch. showed remorse in his closing remarks last week: “I’m sorry. I’m very sorry. I didn’t refuse and I’m ready to accept whatever measures are imposed.” His defense attorney, Viktor Ovsjannikow, demanded an acquittal. “He complied with an order, even though it was a criminal order,” the lawyer said. But the Public Ministry does not accept this.
“This is just one of many cases that have taken place after February 24. A woman lost her husband, her children her father, her grandchildren her grandfather,” said prosecutor Andriy Sinyuk.
Vadim S., who hails from the Irkutsk region of Siberia, said he and his column of tanks were attacked after Russia invaded Ukraine. They then stole a car to get away. And the older man was a witness. “There was a man there who was talking on the phone. Ensign Makejev gave the order to shoot,” said Vadim Sh. in cut. Makejev, whom he doesn’t know any better, yelled at him. After an initial refusal, he let out a small burst of fire. The group of five soldiers feared being betrayed, he explained.
“I don’t deny my guilt”
Later, he himself went into captivity because he wanted to live and “not fight”. “I don’t deny my guilt.” Another Russian soldier who went with him into captivity confirmed the version in court. The commander was between 25 and 30 years old, the witness said. They had been informed that the officer was dead.
Katerina Shelipova, the widow, demanded life imprisonment for the soldier. “But if he is replaced by one of our Mariupol defenders, I am not against it.” According to Moscow, more than 2,400 Ukrainian fighters were taken prisoner by the Russians at the Azov steelworks in the port city of Mariupol. Russia describes them as staunch neo-Nazis who committed war crimes.
Expected process wave
A whole wave of lawsuits in Ukraine and Russia can now be expected. In the end, the sides could once again agree to the prisoner exchange. For Ukraine, however, this is just the beginning of the acceptance of countless war crimes since the Russian invasion began three months ago.
Meanwhile, Russian troops withdrew from the northeastern areas of Kiev, Chernihiv and Sumy. After his departure, reports of atrocities sparked global outrage. More than 400 dead were found in the Kiev suburb of Bucha alone. Many crimes have also been documented in the suburbs of Irpin and Borodyanka.
Private Wadym Sch’s mother. told Kremlin critic Meduza in an interview that she first heard about the war in Ukraine when she learned of her son’s arrest on March 1. Her relatives therefore showed her a video in which her son can be seen on the Internet. Unlike many websites, the YouTube video platform is still accessible in Russia. The mother also said that she now knows many parents whose children are in captivity. She wrote to Putin because she wanted her son back. But there was no answer.
Kiev journalist Volodymyr Solkin Vadim Sh. met and meanwhile conducted many interviews with prisoners and mothers of dead Russian soldiers, he was shocked that hardly anyone knew what Russia was doing in Ukraine. He asks Vadim Sch. in the end also what he advises his companions. The prisoner says that everyone must lay down their weapons.