Police closes case on obstruction faced by "Espreso" journalist in Ternopil

The case on obstruction of the professional work of the "Espresso" reporter Maria Ivanovska in Ternopil has been closed due to the lack of corpus delicti.

The regional representative of the IMI was informed of this by the investigation department of the Ternopil Oblast National Police.

According to the deputy head of the investigation department, police colonel Oksana Tsvihun, the case was opened in 2023 under Part 1 of Article 117 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine ("Obstructing the legal professional work of journalists"). However, it was closed due to the lack of corpus delicti on the basis of Part 1 Clause 2 of the Article 284 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine ("Closing criminal cases and proceedings against a legal entity").

In May 2023, in Ternopil, a lodger of the Northern Commercial Court of Appeal judge, Lyudmila Kropyvna, assaulted the "Espreso" reporter, Maria Ivanovska. The Ternopil district National Police department opened a case for obstructing the legal professional work of journalists and robbery in wartime.

As Tsvihun noted, since the start of the full-scale invasion, the investigative department of the Ternopil Oblast National Police has only recorded this one fact of violation of the rights and freedoms of journalists in the oblast.