Ex-official convicted of assaulting a journalist and embezzlement declared wanted
The police has declared the Pidhaytsi (Volyn oblast) Village Council ex-official Heorhiy Stefanesa, who was sentenced to 5,5 years in prison for assaulting the journalist Lyudmyla Yavorska and embezzling budget funds, wanted.
His profile appeared on the Ukrainian MIA portal in the section "Wanted persons hiding from authorities".
Olha Buzuluk, the spokeswoman of the Volyn Oblast National Police HQ, confirmed this to the IMI representative in the Volyn oblast.
Screenshot by Maya Holub
According to Buzuluk, he was declared wanted on January 13, 2024.
"The police received the court's judgement regarding Stefanesa in early January. We searched his place of residence, but did not find him there. Accordingly, on January 13, the convict was declared wanted and will soon be declared a wanted person internationally. Action is being taken to identify and detain him," she said.
As the IMI reported, on April 19, 2023, the Lutsk City District Court (Volyn oblast) convicted the former Pidhaytsi village council official, Heorhiy Stefanesa, for embezzling budget funds and assaulting the journalist Lyudmyla Yavorska, sentencing him to five and a half years in prison.
Stefanesa asked in the court of appeal to cancel the first instance ruling, but on December 14, 2023, the Volyn Court of Appeal upheld the judgement of the first instance court.
On January 4, 2021, in the village of Pidhaytsi, Volyn oblast, the project manager of the Pidhaytsi village council, Heorhiy Stefanesa, threw his fists at the reporter Lyudmila Yavorska, who came to thePidhaytsi village council to get comments from the deputies regarding the road works on one of the streets, as well as to file an information access request.
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