The Russian soldier tried in kyiv for a war crime in Ukraine “is not guilty”, said his lawyer on the third day of this first trial of its kind since the start of the Russian invasion, the verdict of which will be announced on Monday.
“Given all the evidence and testimony, I believe that Mr. Chichimarine is not guilty of the crime with which he is accused,” said Viktor Ovsiannykov during his closing argument, asking the judges “to acquit (his) client” , noted an AFP journalist.
“I am sincerely sorry,” said a few minutes later Sergeant Vadim Chichimarine, 21, who admitted on Wednesday to killing Oleksandr Chelipov, a 62-year-old civilian, on February 28 in northeastern Ukraine.
“I regret what I did,” added the young man, shaved head, from his glass cage. Before adding: “I was nervous in this situation. I didn’t want to kill.” “I want to apologize for what I did.”
The lawyer assured that his client did not want to carry out the order to shoot, arguing that he had not obeyed in the first time. The defense also stressed that he had surrendered voluntarily to the Ukrainian forces and did not deny the facts.
The lawyer further assured that the soldier was only trying to save his life, placing the responsibility on his commanders.
Arguments swept away by the prosecution who demanded life imprisonment. “He was carrying out a criminal order and was well aware of it,” said one of the prosecutors.
Speaking in Russian, the soldier had an interpreter at his side who translated for him the words of other participants held in Ukrainian.
According to the prosecution, Vadim Chichimarine was commanding a small unit within a tank division when his convoy was attacked. With four other soldiers, he then stole a car.
As they were driving near the village of Chupakhivka, in the Sumy region (northeast), they had come across Mr. Chelipov, who was pushing his bicycle while telephoning, before Mr. Chichimarine shot him dead. .
Already on Thursday, this soldier from Irkutsk in Siberia had “ask forgiveness” from the widow of Mr. Chelipov during a brief exchange between the two.