You're reading: Lutsenko says Kyiv court lets military prosecutor investigate and convict Russia Black Sea Fleet commander Vitko in absentia

The Ukrainian Military Prosecutor's Office has been allowed by Kyiv's Pechersky District Court to conduct a special judicial investigation into Russian Black Sea Fleet (BSF) Commander Vice Admiral Alexander Vitko's activity and convict him in absentia.

“This is not simply a [court] ruling, it’s a huge case,” Ukrainian Prosecutor General Yuriy Lutsenko said at a press conference in Kyiv on May 30, according to an Interfax-Ukraine correspondent.

The Military Prosecutor’s Office of Ukraine made a request to court to authorize Vitko’s arrest because he had failed to appear in Ukraine in the fixed term.

Express delivery service DIMEX delivered a letter from Ukrainian prosecutors to Vitko in Sevastopol on April 18.

As was reported earlier, the press service of the Prosecutor General’s Office (PGO) said on April 28 that Vitko, who is suspected of committing grave crimes against Ukraine, was hiding from investigative agencies.

Vitko is suspected of instigation to high treason through February 20, 2014 to March 21, 2014; committing actions meant to damage important defense facilities, organizing and directly participating in aggressive war against Ukraine (Part 3 of Article 110; Part 4 of Article 27, Part 1 of Article 111; Part 3 of Article 27, Article 113, Part 2 of Article 28, Parts 1, 2 of Article 437 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

Investigators of the Main Military Prosecutor gathered enough evidence that Vitko together with subordinate troops effected the military occupation and subsequent annexation of Crimea, which grossly violated major international legal acts, including the Agreement between Ukraine and the Russian Federation on the status and conditions of the Russian Black Sea Fleet in Ukrainian territory dated May 28, 1997.

Vitko used his powers of military planning and governing of Russian BSF units, favored Russia’s military occupation of Crimean peninsula, blocked armed units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, including transportation and communications resources, and participated in the takeover of Ukrainian state government buildings, as well as engaging in other activities violating the territorial integrity of Ukraine, causing a damage and loss of state property with an estimated worth of Hr 1.08 trillion.