The former executive of Kyiv shipbuilding and arms company stands trial over supplies of allegedly defective military equipment to Ukraine’s Army. Kostyantyn Rybachkovsky who defends Shandra in court said his client was exposed to ‘physical and psychological pressure’ when arrested at night and escorted in a police van handcuffed. Ill-treatment of Shandra reminds of the polices of Soviet secret police at the time of 1937-1938 purges, argued the lawyer adding that his client was kept all day in a small convoy room in the court deprived of food and normal physical activity.

The legal team has lodged a complaint to European court of human rights citing torture and abuse.

According to Shandra’s defenders, the complaint to the ECHR is based on a number of provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights.

‘Illegality and excessive precautionary measures in the form of detention, violation of the principle of presumption of innocence. For an expert in this field, it is quite clear that this is a biased decision guided by internal motives.’

 

‘Kuznya na Rybalskomu’ case

Kuzny na Rybalskomy plant top manager was arrested in connection to supplies of military equipment. State Bureau of Investigation said the contracted combat boats and military ambulance lorries failed to meet the specifications ‘causing the country damage amounting to 475 million hryvnas’.

Rostyslav Pavlenko, a ‘European Solidarity’ MP, noted that the huge amount of bail is ‘torture’.

MP Victoria Siumar joined criticism of the decision arguing  the excessive amounts of bail are evidence of the political motivation of the case and a violation of human rights.