Lawyer seeks acquittal for sergeant

The lawyer for a Russian soldier who was the first to go on trial for an alleged war crime in Ukraine asked a Kyiv court Friday to acquit his client, who had admitted killing an unarmed Ukrainian civilian during the first days of the war.

Ukrainian defence lawyer Victor Ovsyanikov argued that his client, Sgt. Vadim Shishimarin, 21, had been unprepared for the “violent military confrontation” and mass casualties that Russian troops encountered when they first invaded Ukraine.

“It is essential, your honour, in my opinion, to assess Shishimarin’s intentions as to what happened and the reasons he was guided by when he fired,” Ovsyanikov said. “Could any of the people present here understand these circumstances in that situation?”

Shishimarin, a member of a Russian tank unit who was eventually captured, testified Thursday that he shot the civilian from an open car window on orders from two officers. He said one of the officers insisted the man, 62-year-old Oleksandr Shelipov, could report their location in the northeastern Sumy region to Ukrainian forces.

Prosecutors have contended the directions to fire did not come from Shishimarin’s direct commander and so did not constitute an order. He could get life in prison if convicted.

The judges who heard the case started their deliberations Friday. A verdict is expected Monday, Ovsyanikov said.

On Thursday, Shishimarin asked the victim’s widow, who also appeared in the trial, to forgive him for what he did. “I realize that you can’t forgive me, but I’m pleading you for forgiveness,” he told her.

The woman, Kateryna Shelipova, said her husband “was all to me. He was my defender.”