The Russian soldier who is on trial in Kyiv for war crime “He is not guilty,” his lawyer said on the third day of his trial, the first of its kind since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“Given all the evidence and testimonies, I believe that Sisimarin is not guilty of the crime he is accused of.”said his lawyer Viktor Ofsyanikovwhile asking the judges “to acquit his client”.
“I’m really sorry,” the 21-year-old sergeant said a few minutes later Vadim Sisimarin, who admitted on Wednesday that he had killed Oleksandr Selipov, a 62-year-old civilian, on February 28 in northeastern Ukraine.
“I’m sorry for what I did”, added the young man with the shaved head. “I was worried about the situation. I did not want to kill. “I want to apologize for what I did,” he said.
The lawyer assured that his client did not want to obey the order he received to shoot against of Selipov, saying that the first time he was given this order he did not obey. The defense also stressed that the soldier surrendered himself to the Ukrainian forces and did not deny the incident.
Sisimarin’s lawyer said he was trying to save his life and blamed his commanders.
These arguments were rejected by the prosecution, which demanded that they be imposed on the Russian soldier for life. “He was carrying out a criminal order and he knew it well,” said one of the prosecutors.
Speaking in Russian, the soldier had an interpreter by his side who translated what the others present in Ukrainian said.
According to the indictment, Sisimarin was in charge of a unit of an armored division when their convoy was attacked. He stole a car with four soldiers to escape. They were near the village of Tsupahifka in Sumy province when they met 62-year-old Selipov pushing his bicycle and talking on the phone.
“One of the soldiers ordered the accused to kill the civilian in order not to denounce themFor the theft of the car, said the office of the Attorney General, something that Sisimarin did.
As early as yesterday Thursday, the Russian soldier, who comes from Siberian Irkutsk “apologizes” by Selipov’s widow during a brief conversation in the courtroom, explaining that she had received a “mandate”.
The court decision is awaited to be announced on Monday.
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