A court in Kyiv sentenced Russian sergeant Vadim Shishimarin to life in prison. Shishimarin is the first Russian accused of war crimes in Ukraine. He had earlier pleaded guilty in a Kiev court.
On May 19, Shishimarin testified and explained why he shot 62-year-old Alexander Shelipov in the village of Chupakhovka on February 28, 2022.
«There was a man there, he was speaking on the phone. Warrant officer Makeyev ordered me to shoot him. I refused. Then another serviceman ordered me to shoot in a threatening tone, arguing he would turn us in. I fired a burst of shots,» Shishimarin said. Answering the judge's question about his «inner attitude» toward the murdered man, the sergeant said: «I didn't want to kill him. I shot so that they would stop bothering me.»
«I find that unacceptable and criminal. The capital punishment. I do not deny my guilt,» Shishimarin said.
The widow of Alexander Shelipov, the Sumy region resident killed by Shishimarin, also testified in court. The prosecutor asked her what punishment she would like for the Russian soldier. «I think life imprisonment. But if he is exchanged for our Azovstal defenders, I will not be against it,» Ekaterina Shelipova replied.
Earlier, Vadim Shyshimarin's lawyer said his client admitted his guilt in the murder but claimed he had been following the orders of the commanding officer.
21-year-old sergeant of the Russian Federation army Vadim Shishimarin was one of the first accused under part 2 of article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. According to the investigation, on February 28, the squad leader of the 4th Kantemirovskaya Tank Division Shishimarin shot and killed a 62-year-old resident of the village of Chupahovka of Sumy region. Prior to that, the convoy with which Shishimarin traveled was destroyed by the AFU. While fleeing the battlefield, the sergeant and four other Russian soldiers fired on a private car and hijacked it. They drove the stolen car into the village, where they killed a man who was riding his bicycle on the way home speaking on the phone. One of the soldiers ordered Shishimarin to kill the civilian to stop him from reporting them to the Ukrainian military.