The public prosecutor has asked for life in prison for four suspects.

The suspects are:

• Igor Girkin, rebel leader
• Sergej Doebinski, second in command
• Oleg Poelatov, assistant to Sergej Doebinski
• Leonid Chartsjenko, garrison commander

None of the suspects showed up in court. Poelatov did make a video statement in which he also offered his compassion to the next of kin.
Except for Poelatov, none of the accused have accepted legal council.
Poelatov's defence lawyer will have 12 days to offer a defecence, starting march 7th.
The public prosecutor has said that the four suspects have been actively and passively hampering the investigation.

https://www.telegraaf.nl/nieuws/1859079 ... h17-proces

The public prosecutor has asked for a life in imprisonment for the four defendants. The judges will have a verdict in April 2022.

Link

Realistically, what are the chances that the 4 perpetrators will actually be served justice for the murder of 298 souls on board MH17? Absolute zero?

TheFlyingDisk wrote:

Realistically, what are the chances that the 4 perpetrators will actually be served justice for the murder of 298 souls on board MH17? Absolute zero?

Probably, but it's important to find out exactly what happened. Plus it's no harm keeping the attack in the news and reminding people who was behind it. Putin dislikes having the spotlight shone on him in this way. The only time I have ever seen him rattled was when being interviewed after the exposure of the Russian agents who the tried to kill Sergei Skripal in Salisbury in 2018.

Braybuddy wrote:

TheFlyingDisk wrote:

Realistically, what are the chances that the 4 perpetrators will actually be served justice for the murder of 298 souls on board MH17? Absolute zero?

Probably, but it's important to find out exactly what happened. Plus it's no harm keeping the attack in the news and reminding people who was behind it. Putin dislikes having the spotlight shone on him in this way. The only time I have ever seen him rattled was when being interviewed after the exposure of the Russian agents who the tried to kill Sergei Skripal in Salisbury in 2018.

Well, never say never, maybe in due time these people will be put in jail if convicted that is. They will be put on the international watchlist so if they go abroad, they will be arrested and most probably put on a plane to Schiphol. But that is not the most important thing. If convicted an independent court indeed found these people guilty, so the evidence that the Russian military was involved is indisputable and thus that the Putin regime is guilty of bringing down the MH17.

On a side note, it will help the civil case by the European court against the Russian state.

Has there been a purge of this thread? The last message before Dutchy's from an hour ago goes back a year!?
I know this one had more recent posts, including by myself.

petertenthije wrote:

Has there been a purge of this thread? The last message before Dutchy's from an hour ago goes back a year!?
I know this one had more recent posts, including by myself.

No, there were two threads, I have merged them.

Dutchy wrote:

Well, never say never, maybe in due time these people will be put in jail if convicted that is. They will be put on the international watchlist so if they go abroad, they will be arrested and most probably put on a plane to Schiphol. But that is not the most important thing. If convicted an independent court indeed found these people guilty, so the evidence that the Russian military was involved is indisputable and thus that the Putin regime is guilty of bringing down the MH17.

On a side note, it will help the civil case by the European court against the Russian state.

With the US Administration and the German government softening their hardline against Russian gas exports and Russian violations of the Minsk Agreements, I can't see a guilty verdict meaning much in the grand scheme.

The Netherlands and Ukraine have argued that a top European court should hear their cases that seek to hold Russia responsible for human rights violations in eastern Ukraine including the 2014 downing of a passenger jet that killed all 298 people on board.

Link

This is the trial between the Australian/Dutch governments versus The Russian Federation with the European Court of Human Rights. This is separate court case to the Dutch trail.

The Court is expected to reach its virdict on November 17th of this year.

Link

Glad this trail looks like it does come to an end. I expect both parties or one of them to appeal and that could take another year or so.

Dutchy wrote:

The Court is expected to reach its virdict on November 17th of this year.
Link
Glad this trail looks like it does come to an end. I expect both parties or one of them to appeal and that could take another year or so.

Do you know if any of the defendants have been among those Russians killed since that country's ill-advised invasion of Ukraine? I have been watching for names I might recognize.

alfa164 wrote:

Dutchy wrote:

The Court is expected to reach its virdict on November 17th of this year.
Link
Glad this trail looks like it does come to an end. I expect both parties or one of them to appeal and that could take another year or so.

Do you know if any of the defendants have been among those Russians killed since that country's ill-advised invasion of Ukraine? I have been watching for names I might recognize.

Didn't hear of any in the Dutch news. I am not an insider, so I don't know.

I can imagine that the Russians want to keep them as far away from the frontlines as possible. If one is captured, he could confess and that would not be in the interest of Russia.

The verdict is guilty for 3 of the four and not guilty for the fourth. They have been sentenced to life in prison.

Link

Dutchy wrote:

The verdict is guilty for 3 of the four and not guilty for the fourth. They have been sentenced to life in prison.

Link

Here is an english version.

https://www.rferl.org/a/dutch-court-con ... 35230.html

Basically Russia still ignores the meaning of the verdict.
I find it a bit short reaching as that crew had to be ordered into Ukraine by much higher forces.

casinterest wrote:

Dutchy wrote:

The verdict is guilty for 3 of the four and not guilty for the fourth. They have been sentenced to life in prison.

Link

Here is an english version.

https://www.rferl.org/a/dutch-court-con ... 35230.html

Basically Russia still ignores the meaning of the verdict.
I find it a bit short reaching as that crew had to be ordered into Ukraine by much higher forces.

Thee judges were crystal clear in their verdict: Russia was in control, the Kremlin was in control.

Dutchy wrote:

casinterest wrote:

Dutchy wrote:

The verdict is guilty for 3 of the four and not guilty for the fourth. They have been sentenced to life in prison.

Link

Here is an english version.

https://www.rferl.org/a/dutch-court-con ... 35230.html

Basically Russia still ignores the meaning of the verdict.
I find it a bit short reaching as that crew had to be ordered into Ukraine by much higher forces.

Thee judges were crystal clear in their verdict: Russia was in control, the Kremlin was in control.

The judges were also clear in saying that if/when more evidence is developed against those higher up the chain, there will be more prosecutions.

Usually the lower level criminals are offered a choice to face justice or to provide evidence against the ones who commanded them.

This time, so far, it wasn't/isn't an option, but who knows what happens in the future, in particular if Donetsk is recaptured.

Revelation wrote:

Dutchy wrote:

casinterest wrote:

Here is an english version.

https://www.rferl.org/a/dutch-court-con ... 35230.html

Basically Russia still ignores the meaning of the verdict.
I find it a bit short reaching as that crew had to be ordered into Ukraine by much higher forces.

Thee judges were crystal clear in their verdict: Russia was in control, the Kremlin was in control.

The judges were also clear in saying that if/when more evidence is developed against those higher up the chain, there will be more prosecutions.

Usually the lower level criminals are offered a choice to face justice or to provide evidence against the ones who commanded them.

This time, so far, it wasn't/isn't an option, but who knows what happens in the future, in particular if Donetsk is recaptured.

I just feel like sentencing the drones is great and all, but this was a far higher up chain. Might as well find the Russian Army in absentia to be guilty and charge any officer with a war crime the higher up they go.