The Ukrainian court sentenced two Russian tankers in absentia in the case of shelling the hospital

The Trostyanets District Court of the Sumy Region sentenced Russian servicemen Petro Smirnov and Aynur Mukhametzhanov in absentia to 11 years of imprisonment for the shelling of the Trostyanets City Hospital on March 18, 2022, the press service of the Prosecutor’s Office of the Sumy Region reported. According to the documents of the Russian army, one of the accused went missing three days before committing the crime for which he was convicted.

According to the verdict, Smirnov, the junior sergeant in command of the tank of the 2nd Guards Taman motorized rifle division, gave the order to shell the city hospital of Trostyanets during the invasion of Ukraine. Private Mukhametzhanov, who holds the position of gunner-operator, carried out his order.

The position of the accused in this case is unknown. Smirnov went missing at the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine, the Kazan newspaper “BIZNES Online” wrote. The last time he contacted the family was on March 7, 2022, later the military took DNA samples from family members that could be needed to identify the sergeant.

The editorial office has an order from the military unit, which states that on March 15, 2022, Smirnov could not be found by his command. In 2023, the family of a soldier received a call from an unknown number and said that he was in captivity and would be killed if he was not released, the publication reports. Several people listed in the same order with Smirnov later turned out to be dead, the newspaper writes.