The prosecutor asked the district court of Helsinki in Finland to sentence one of the leaders of the Russian neo-Nazi group DSRG "Rusich" Yan Petrovsky (Voislav Torden) to life imprisonment. The Russian is accused of a number of war crimes in Ukraine.
Points of attention
- Petrovsky, a leader of the Russian neo-Nazi group DSRG 'Rusich,' is accused of war crimes in Ukraine and faces a potential life sentence in Finland.
- The prosecution alleges Petrovsky and his group killed 22 and wounded 4 Ukrainian soldiers in 2014 while participating in battles in the Luhansk region.
- Petrovsky denies the charges, claiming the 'Rusych' group does not adhere to neo-Nazi ideology.
- This case is significant as it marks the first instance in Finland's history where accusations of war crimes in Ukraine have been brought forward.
- Petrovsky, also known as Jan Petrovskyi (Torden), faces sanctions from several countries and has been remanded in custody in Finland.
Russian neo-Nazi Petrovsky can be behind bars for life
According to the investigation, Petrovsky and members of his group killed 22 and wounded 4 Ukrainian soldiers in the fall of 2014 while participating in battles in the Luhansk region against the Armed Forces of Ukraine on the side of Russian-backed separatists. The prosecution's evidence is based on video recordings filmed and published by members of "Rusych".
The prosecution claims that "Rusich" is a Russian military group with a neo-Nazi ideology, and that Petrovsky, as the deputy commander, was responsible for organizing the crimes.
At the same time, Petrovskyi's lawyer Heikki Lampela stated that his client denies all charges of war crimes. He claims that the "Rusych" group does not adhere to neo-Nazi ideology.
In turn, the prosecutor demands life imprisonment for Petrovsky. As the publication writes, this case is unique, as it is the first case in the history of Finland when accusations of war crimes committed in Ukraine have been brought forward.
What is known about Jan Petrovskyi (Torden)
Torden was arrested in Finland on July 20, 2023, at the gate of a flight to Nice, France, while the border patrol was conducting a check for foreigners there. At the Helsinki-Vantaa airport, Torden presented a Russian passport and a residence permit issued by Finland.
Based on their intelligence, the Border Guard suspected that Torden's previous name was Jan Petrovskyi. According to official data, Petrovsky was banned from entering the entire Schengen zone, imposed by both Norway and the Czech Republic.
Jan Petrovsky, who previously fought against Ukraine, lived in Finland under the assumed name Voyislav Torden. It is under the sanctions of the EU, USA, Japan, Switzerland and New Zealand.
On December 11, 2023, one of the district courts of Finland remanded him in custody. Previously, Petrovskyi was released from custody on December 8, when Finland refused to extradite Petrovskyi to Ukraine. But Finnish border guards immediately returned the man to custody on the grounds that he had violated the Aliens Act. They insisted that the defendant be detained.
On December 8, 2023, Finland refused to extradite Petrovsky to Ukraine. The conditions of detention in Ukrainian prisons were cited by the Supreme Court as one of the reasons for the refusal. It was noted there that the European Court of Human Rights recognized that the third article of the Convention on Human Rights is being violated in Ukrainian prisons.
On the same day, the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine responded to the refusal. Andrii Gulkevich, a representative of the OGPU, said that the agency continues to look for ways to detain and extradite him to Ukraine.
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