Russian soldier Vadim Shishimarin has been sentenced to life in prison for war crimes by a court in Kiev. Prosecutors accused the 21-year-old sergeant of shooting dead an elderly civilian in the northeastern Sumy Region of Ukraine during the first days of the Russian military offensive, which was launched in February.
The Russian serviceman received the harshest punishment possible under Ukrainian law, as the death penalty has been banned in the country since 2000.
Shishimarin has “violated the rules and customs of war” and should be “found guilty and assigned a penalty of life in prison,” the judge said.
Shishimarin’s lawyers say they are going to appeal the ruling, with plans to go all the way to the European Court of Human Rights if higher Ukrainian courts uphold the sentence.