A court convicted the 41-year-old Demishkan of taking part in the 2007 murder of Vasyl Kryvozub, a former business partner who was thrown into a Dnipro River canal after his three assailants tied a an iron heating radiator to his back.
When arrested, Demishkan admitted to the murder and showed police where the crime occurred. He later changed his story and was let out of jail on bail.
The court ridiculously decided the murder wasn’t premeditated, despite the fact the victim as kidnapped and tortured for three days leading up to his death.
Two of Demishkan’s accomplices were given five- and seven-year prison terms with time already served. Demishkan, the ringleader, was given a suspended sentence – meaning no prison time – after he produced evidence that he was ill with cancer.
The more likely reason for leniency is that Demishkan is the son of Volodymyr Demishkan, head of the state roadway service Ukravtodor and a former pro-presidential lawmaker who is believed to be a hunting buddy and close friend of Yanukovych.
These verdicts and sentences are travesties in an increasingly barbaric nation. From murder to lesser crimes, such as fighting copyright piracy, officials time and again don’t do the right thing.
Ex-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko is serving a seven-year prison sentence for the criminalization of her political decisions in the 2009 gas deal with Russia. But there are many less-known examples of a judicial system that reeks of corruption.
The rule of law in Yanukovychland amounts to this: Allies get away with anything, including murder and plunder of the nation, while opponents get prison sentences on dubious charges. This nation is a dangerous place and it’s hard to see where the moral force will come from within the administration to change course.
