Vojislav Torden, a Russian responsible for the Néonazi Roussitch paramilitary group, was sentenced on Friday March 14 in Finland to life imprisonment for four war crimes committed in eastern Ukraine in 2014, a verdict greeted by kyiv. This judgment has ” surprised “ The condemned person, who will appeal, said his lawyer Heikki Lampela, quoted by the Finnish press.
The Ukrainian prosecution was welcomed by this conviction: “This case marks a key stage in the fight against the impunity of serious violations of international humanitarian law”he said in a statement. In contrast, Russia denounced the character “Partial” of his trial, and ” policy “ of the verdict. “The partiality of the Helsinki court, which pronounced a manifestly politicized sentence against a Russian citizen, is obvious”accused the Russian embassy in Finland in a statement.
The facts date back to September 5, 2014, after the start of the armed conflict in the separatist region Prorussian of Louhansk. An ambush had been organized against a convoy of two vehicles, a truck and a car, transporting soldiers of the Aïdar battalion of the Ukrainian defense forces.
The surprise attack took place on the road connecting Louhansk to Chtchastia, at the rear of the advanced positions of the Ukrainian forces, at the height of the village of Tsvitni Pisky, at a control point previously used by the Ukrainian forces.
Brutal methods
Detained in Finland since July 2023, the date on which he had been arrested at Helsinki airport, Vojislav Torden, 38 years old according to local press, was accused of having participated in the murder of these soldiers.
This accusation, the first, was rejected by the Helsinki court in his verdict. “The evidence did not make it possible to establish with certainty that the Roussitch group was solely responsible for the ambush. Other armed groups were also present at the scene “he wrote.
The other four counts, for whom the Russian citizen was sentenced, concern the brutal methods used during this attack. He was in particular found guilty of the murder of an injured Ukrainian soldier, said the court.
The Russian then authorized the fighters under his command to mutilate another Ukrainian soldier, Ivan Issyk, who died following his injuries, incurring on the cheek the symbol used by the group – the Kolovrat, or “Tournant wheel”an emblem often used by ultra -nationalist and neonazi groups in Russia and Eastern Europe.
Dissemination on social networks of humiliating photos
The other two war crimes for which he was condemned include taking and disseminating on social networks of humiliating photos by the combatants of the paramilitary group posing before the corpse of a soldier, as well as the dissemination of online messages claiming that Roussitch did not show any pity, added the court.
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Previously known as Ian Petrovski, Vojislav Torden had during his trial started in December 2024 denied any involvement. He explained to be in Louhansk for “Preventing the repression of the Russians” Who lived there, according to Yle, Finnish public radioevision.
Ukraine had asked for the extradition of Mr. Torden, but Helsinki had refused, believing that he would not obtain a just and equitable trial. The Supreme Court had also cited the risk of inhuman conditions of detention. Finland applies the principle of universal competence for this type of crime, which means that it can initiate proceedings for certain serious crimes regardless of the place where they have been committed.