• Topics / Social and economic rights
• Topics / Law enforcement agencies
Criminal investigation over alleged forged Chornobyl documents declared unlawful
On 3 February 2012 the Kyivsky District Court in Kharkiv overturned the decision to initiate a criminal investigation over alleged forging of documents confirming the status of former Chornobyl clean-up workers.
The criminal investigation was initiated following instructions from the Minister of Internal Affairs. It was claimed that forged documents had been presented for 4 former Chornobyl clean-up workers to receive the pensions due people who took part in the clean-up.
The men involved lodged appeals with the court. The first case to be examined was that of Volodymyr Biloyenko. He was represented by Volodymyr Tymoshenko who stated that the criminal investigation had been initiated without summonsing his client, without questioning him or checking the facts. “This indicates that a command was issued to carry out reprisals against Biloyenko who is one of the leaders of the former Chornobyl clean-up workers by falsifying the material of the criminal case. That is, prosecuting an innocent person by committing a crime against him”.
The plaintiff had asked for the decision to be revoked and for the investigators who initiated criminal proceedings to be held to answer. The judge allowed only the first demand.
Judge Svitlana Sharenko agreed that the investigator had not had sufficient information suggesting elements of a crime to initiate a criminal case, and the proper procedure for checking the information had not been followed.
Two analogous claims are to be examined later.