The very head of the board of the Public Organization "Center for Counteracting Corruption" Vitali Shabunin is suspected of "deliberately inflicting bodily injuries of moderate severity," according to the website of the CPC.
According to investigators, Shabunin beat a journalist who had been watching the CPC team for several months in a row.
"The very suspicion will be handed tomorrow at the Dniprovsky branch of the National Police. Tomorrow the court will choose a preventive measure for Shabunin - a personal commitment or arrest. Shabunin is charged with h. 2 of Article 345-1 - "threat or violence against a journalist", namely: "deliberately causing a journalist of moderate severity of bodily harm in connection with the exercise of this journalist of legitimate professional activity", - said in the message of activists.
The "Anti-Corruption Center" reported that, according to their information, prosecutors insist on handing the suspicion, in particular, the procedural leader in the case of Dmitry Rusnak.
"The investigation did not clarify two key things: why suddenly the investigators consider the provocateur a journalist and, in fact, where did the" average severity "of the injuries come from," says the lawyer of the Center for Counteracting Corruption, Elena Shcherban.
According to her, the victim Filimonenko himself called an ambulance himself refused to be hospitalized and assisted by doctors. This event is recorded on video, there are witnesses. Also, according to the lawyer, for several hours the victim had no signs of grievous bodily harm, they appeared later. Therefore, the CPC believes that Filimonenko was beaten after he left the scene to get a different degree of severity, for which a more serious responsibility is foreseen.
Also, the victim refused to provide the court with medical documents.
"It follows from the court's orders that Filimonenko was not hospitalized for one day in inpatient treatment at the Kyiv City Emergency Hospital, which must be delivered by law, and 21 days" was treated "in Kyiv City Clinical Hospital No. 12, where he constantly posted video. Such a period of stay in the hospital is needed precisely so that the doctors qualify the injuries as "heavy", "noted the lawyers of the CPC.
After the treatment, the victim fled the country abroad to evade criminal responsibility, as publicly reported on his Facebook page, added to the "Anti-Corruption Center".
"It is noteworthy that law enforcement officers investigate other cases of attacks and beatings of journalists without any results. Only a few cases reach the court.
This case against Shabunin is a political order, the purpose of which is to neutralize a public figure and an anti-corruption activist, "anti-corruption activists added.
Recall that earlier the Investigation Department of the Fiscal Service of Kyiv instituted criminal proceedings against the leaders of the public organization "Center for Counteracting Corruption". In the "Center for Combating Corruption" consider the initiation of criminal proceedings by the tax police by continuing pressure on the organization and activating attempts to block its work.