Ukrainian court sentences Yanukovych to 15 years in prison in absentia

The Podilskyy district court in Kiev has sentenced former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych to 15 years in prison in absentia after finding him guilty of organising an illegal border crossing and incitement to defection. Along with him, the former head of the Ukrainian president's security service, Kostyantyn Kobzar, was sentenced in absentia. He received 10 years in prison for organising the illegal transfer of persons across the state border and desertion, the press services of the United Civil Party and the State Border Guard reported.

Prosecutors proved in court that on 23 February 2014, the former Ukrainian president, acting in collusion with the former head of the presidential security service and representatives of Russia, illegally crossed the state border of Ukraine by air and organised the transfer of at least 20 people from among his close entourage and UGO servicemen," the report said.

Yanukovych and his men flew three Russian military helicopters from the outskirts of the village of Urzuf in the Mangushka district of Donetsk Region in the direction of the military airfield in the city of Yeisk. And after that - to Anapa and Crimea, from where Yanukovych was later taken by sea. As a result, together with the former president, a part of the state security personnel left Sevastopol for Russia. They did not return to military service," the Prosecutor-General's Office said.

It is alleged that the route of Yanukovych's movements was coordinated by Russia and agreed by Vladimir Putin personally.

Yanukovych reportedly lives in Barvikha village near Moscow.

The current verdict was the second for Yanukovych. In January 2019, a court in Ukraine sentenced him in absentia to 13 years in prison in a case of state treason.

Since 2014, the former Ukrainian president has been under sanctions imposed by the USA, the EU, the UK and other countries.