Under the public prosecution of the prosecutors of the Vinnytsia Specialized Prosecutor's Office in the field of defense of the Southern region, a former serviceman of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has been found guilty of treason and desertion.

The Vinnytsia City Court of the Vinnytsia region sentenced him to 15 years of imprisonment with confiscation of property.

It was established that in March 2014, during the temporary occupation of Crimea, an officer who held the position of head of the personnel and formation department - deputy chief of staff of the military unit of the tactical group of the Air Forces "Crimea," did not report to the new place of service and refused to continue military service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Subsequently, he signed a contract with the armed forces of the Russian Federation and, remaining a citizen of Ukraine, served on the side of the aggressor state during the armed conflict.

His actions were qualified under part 1 of Article 111 and part 1 of Article 408 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

Since the accused is located in a temporarily occupied territory, the case was considered under a special procedure (in absentia).

The pre-trial investigation was conducted by investigators of the Territorial Administration of the State Bureau of Investigations (based in Vinnytsia) in Khmelnytskyi.