Police opens desertion case against Serhiy Hnezdilov for going AWOL

Serhiy Hnezdilov. Photo by Serhiy Hnezdilov on Facebook

The police have opened a desertion case over Serhiy Hnezdilov, a soldier of the separate motorized infantry brigade No. 56 of Mariupol, leaving his duty station unauthorized.

The spokeswoman of the Kyiv prosecutor's office, Nadiya Maksimets, reported this to Hromadske.

According to her, the data on a possible violation of the order of military service was entered into the Unified Register of Pretrial Investigations. The police believe that the serviceman's act may constitute a crime provided for in Art. 408 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (desertion).

Under martial law, desertion is punishable by imprisonment for 5 to 12 years. However, in September, the President of Ukraine signed a law that exempts soldiers from liability for the first desertion or going AWOL if they go back to service.

At the same time, a source in the law enforcement informed Interfax-Ukraine that Hnezdilov has no procedural status and has not been notified of suspicion.

"He is currently on sick leave, which will expire shortly. If he does not arrive at the duty station within three days after that, further procedural decisions will be made," the source explained.

He added that the case was opened by the Donetsk defense prosecutor's office on September 23 based on the findings of an online monitoring. It is currently being passed on for investigation.

Previously

On September 21, Serhiy Hnezdilov wrote on Facebook that he had left his duty station unauthorized to draw attention to the need to establish a service period for conscripts.

The Separate Motorized Infantry Brigade (SMIB) No. 53, where he serves, ordered an official investigation and announced that the serviceman "committed actions that contain signs of a crime."

Serhiy Hnezdilov is a Ukrainian serviceman, public activist and participant in the Russo-Ukrainian war. He volunteered for the Ukrainian Armed Forces in 2019, taking an academic leave from studying at the Journalism Department of the Lviv Polytechnic University.

Hnezdilov has taken part in battles in Donetsk oblast, including Pisky and Bakhmut. He is the founder of the cultural festival "VydelkaFest" in his hometown Vylkove in Odesa oblast, and hosts the "++ Podcast" on Hromadske, where he interviews soldiers and discusses the militarization of the society.