You're reading: Vlasenko ready to prove that Tymoshenko’s former cellmate was forced to give interview

Serhiy Vlasenko, a defense lawyer of former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, has said that he has "a direct evidence" of the fact that the ex-premier's former cellmate Yulia Abaplova was forced to give a video interview. 

“I know that this person was forced to do this and they prepared her for it for five months. I have irrefutable evidence of this fact. That’s why I’m addressing the penitentiary service. If this fakery keeps spreading, we’ll publish this evidence in the near future,” Vlasenko told journalists on Tuesday at Court of Appeals of Kharkiv region, where Kyivsky District Court of Kharkiv held a hearing of the UESU case against Tymoshenko.

Watch the video of Abaplova speaking against Tymoshenko.

“Following an incident on April 20 this year, when Yulia Volodymyrivna was cruelly beaten [during an attempt to transport her to Central Clinical Hospital No. 5 from the Kachanivska prison], Yulia Abaplova was forced to say that it was she who beat Tymoshenko. When Yulia Abaplova refused to say so, they took her to a punishment cell and restricted access to her for five months. As you remember, three weeks ago Yulia Abaplova’s lawyers said at a press conference that they could not see her for three weeks. Her father also was not allowed to see his daughter. I know that any person can give up. I have direct evidence of the falsification of the interview published yesterday. I know for sure that Yulia Abaplova was forced to say what she said yesterday,” Vlasenko said.

He added that Tymoshenko had authorized him to announce that she has officially agreed to give interviews to the media.

Earlier, some media published an interview of Tymoshenko’s formed cellmate, in which she said that the ex-premier complained she was suffering from back pain, said she couldn’t walk, but despite this still wore high-heeled shoes.