People’s Deputy Artem Dmytruk, who fled Ukraine, was served with a notice of suspicion over attacks on a law enforcement officer and a military man. This was reported by Komersant ukrainskyi
with reference to the Office of the Prosecutor General.
Law enforcement officials have not named the suspect, but the circumstances of the case point to Dmytruk. The MP is involved in cases that were opened after a fight in the Odesa City Council in January 2022, as well as the beating of a military officer in Kyiv last October.
“The Prosecutor General has served a notice of suspicion to the current MP of Ukraine on the facts of attacks by a group of people on a law enforcement officer and a military officer, attempted theft of firearms, inflicting moderate bodily harm to the victim and hooliganism,” the statement said.
According to the investigation, Dmytruk attacked a law enforcement officer in Odesa in connection with the performance of his official duties. In doing so, the MP deliberately inflicted bodily harm on the law enforcement officer and tried to steal the weapon that was in his possession.
At another time in Kyiv, during a dispute with a military officer, the MP struck the latter several times, in particular, in the head. According to the expert’s opinion, the victim suffered moderate bodily harm as a result of the MP’s unlawful actions.
Dmytruk was summoned to the investigator of the State Bureau of Investigation for investigative and procedural actions on 29 and 30 August.
In his telegram channel, Artem Dmytruk wrote in Russian that “the authorities continue their hunt for those who disagree with the regime”, “no one handed him any suspicions”, and “all these cases are a completely falsified and invented story”.
The day before, Dmytruk wrote on his Telegram channel that allegedly on the instructions of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, they were trying to arrest him. According to him, his place of residence in Kyiv and Odesa was to be searched and he was to be detained.
Later, he published a message calling for “continuing to go to our churches, praying for our country, for persecutors, for enemies” and supporting the head of the UOC-MP, Metropolitan Onufriy.
Earlier, the media reported that Dmytruk had illegally travelled abroad on 24 August. According to media reports, the MP was seen at the police station in the Moldovan town of Stefan Voda.
There, in the presence of an investigator, Dmytruk wrote an application for illegal border crossing, which allows him to obtain refugee status.
The State Bureau of Investigation reported that it had opened a criminal investigation into the illegal border crossing by the current MP.
An investigative team of the SBI is currently working in Odesa, including employees of the Bureau’s central office.
They are investigating how Dmytruk crossed the border and who helped him. Searches have already been conducted on civilians and employees of the State Border Guard Service who allegedly assisted the MP in illegally crossing the border.
The SBI noted that it is currently considering whether to serve the MP with a notice of suspicion.
On 26 August, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy convenes a meeting to discuss the situation with traitors fleeing abroad.
As the head of state said in his evening video address on 25 August, it is about “those who work against our state: traitors to Ukraine who helped Russian aggression or justify it, who fled Ukraine, hiding from responsibility”.
“Our state needs clear answers regarding such persons. Clear responsibility. So that all these “comrades” get what they deserve, no matter where they hide and where they run,” Zelenskyy said.
The meeting should be attended by the heads of the Security Service, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the State Bureau of Investigation, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau, the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, the State Border Guard Service, as well as the Prosecutor General and intelligence representatives.