KYIV. June 29 (Interfax) - The Obolonskyi District Court of Kyiv has decided to hear the case of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych on the counts of high treason and a number of other crimes against the Ukrainian statehood in a special procedure (in absentia).
The panel of judges of the Obolonskyi District made the decision on Thursday by upholding the request of the Military Prosecutor's Office, an Interfax correspondent reported.
"Considering the aforesaid and being guided by Article 393 of the Ukrainian Criminal Procedure Code, the court decided to conduct a special proceeding against the defendant, Yanukovych, under Part 5, Article 27, Part 3, Article 110, Part 1, Article 111, and Part 2, Article 437 of the Ukrainian Criminal Code. The decision shall not be subject to appeal," the presiding judge said.
According to materials in the proceeding, Yanukovych is aware of the criminal case and is hiding from justice in Russian territory, the judge said.
The court decided to disregard the opinion of the defense team that the defendant had a valid excuse not to attend the hearing, as he feared for his life and health, because the defendant had not just failed to appear in court in person but also had not used the videoconferencing option, the judge said.
Yanukovych's lawyer Vitaly Serdyuk said earlier on Thursday his client had informed Kyiv's Obolonskyi District Court about the reasons for his absence from the June 29 hearing of the high treason case. 'The primary reason is the absence of a subpoena properly filed in accordance with the European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters. Another valid excuse for the non-attendance is the threat to his life: the court will be presented with appropriate documents," the lawyer said.
According to earlier reports, Yanukovych is charged with encroachment on the territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine, which led to the death of people or other grave consequences (the crime is punishable by seven to 12 years in prison), high treason (the crime is punishable by ten to 15 years in prison), and waging an aggressive war or aggressive military actions (the crime is punishable by ten to 15 years in prison).