Odesa court gives suspended sentence to a man who threatened a journalist

Illustration by the IMI

The Illichivsk District Court of Odesa oblast sentenced Russian national V. L., born in Zhovtyi Yar (Odesa oblast), to one year in prison with a probation period for threatening to break the camera of journalist Roman Varshanidze while the journalist was filming the man's arrest after a traffic accident.

The judgement was passed on August 23, 2024, reports USI.

The court convicted the defendant of committing a crime under Part 1 of Art. 345-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine ("Threat or violence against a journalist").

The conflict that triggered the proceedings happened in the February of 2024 in Ovidiopol (Odesa oblast). The police stopped V.L. for violating traffic rules. He refused to show his ID, insulted the police officers and threatened them with "the head of the traffic police having a talk with them."

The "Alternativa.org" chief editor Roman Varshanidze, who happened to be at the scene, filmed the incident. As he was filming, V.L. hurled racist insults at him and threatened to break his camera, which the journalist took seriously.

As Roman Varshanidze told the regional representative of the Institute of Mass Information, he immediately filed a statement with the police.

"Unfortunately, the police did not register the statement in the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations, so on February 29, I complained about the inaction of the Ovidiopol police in court. On April 30, the investigating judge of the Illichivsk City Court satisfied my complaint and ordered them to register my statement in the Unified Register of Pretrial Investigations. This resulted in the beginning of proceedings over threats to a journalist," Varshanidze said.

During the court hearing on August 23, the defendant pleaded guilty and the court approved the plea agreement reached earlier between him and the investigators.

During the probation period, the convict is required to report to the authorized probation authority regularly and to report any changes in his place of residence, work, or study.

On June 27, 2024, the "Alternatyva.org" chief editor (Odesa oblast) Roman Varshanidze reported threats from an unknown person who claimed to be a Defense Intelligence representative.