You're reading: Suspected attacker on journalist Chornovol remains under arrest

Serhiy Kotenko, a man suspected of beating activist and journalist Tetiana Chornovol, remains in custody, his lawyer has said. 

Kotenko’s lawyer, Oleksiy Nazarenko, told reporters that Kyiv’s Court
of Appeals on Friday upheld the measure of restraint for his client in
the form of arrest.

Earlier on Friday, the court also rejected a petition lodged by another suspect, Oleksandr Khramtsov.

As reported, Chornovol was beaten in Kyiv region in the early hours
of Dec. 25, 2013. She was driving her car when she was forced off
the road by a dark-colored car. Unidentified individuals pulled the
journalist out of the car and beat her up, pushing her car into a ditch.

The police first opened criminal proceedings under Part 2, Article
269 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (disorderly conduct), which were
later re-qualified for Part 2, Article 121 of the Criminal Code (causing
grievous bodily harm).

The police detained five suspects involved in the attack: Oleksandr
Khramtsov, Serhiy Kotenko and his brother Oleksandr Kotenko, and Andriy
Nasikovsky, who hosted Serhiy Kotenko in his flat on the night the crime
was committed. The name of the fifth suspect is not disclosed.

On Dec. 27, a court ruled to put the four suspects in custody as a preventive measure until Feb. 23, 2014.

The Porsche Cayenne car used in the attack on Chornovol was
registered as belonging to Khramtsov. However, some media reported that
Khramtsov sold this car to Kotenko, who had paid only a part of the
total price to Khramtsov, so the car still was registered as belonging
to the latter.

On Dec. 28, a court ruled to arrest a fifth suspected attacker.
The Interior Ministry said that the suspect was detained on Dec. 27.
This is a 34-year old resident of Dniprodzerzhynsk (Dnipropetrovsk
region) who worked in a security guard service. He said that he came to
Kyiv to buy Porsche Cayenne car. He confessed that he personally took
part in beating the journalist.

Chornovol is a well-known journalist and social activist who has
published a series of investigative materials concerning incumbent
high-ranking officials.