A court has handed down a verdict against the former commander of Kyiv's Berkut unit and five other defendants in the case involving the dispersal of the Maidan protests
The Obolon District Court of Kyiv found the former commander of the Kyiv regiment of the “Berkut” special police unit, three former law enforcement officers, and two coordinators of the so-called “titushki” guilty in the case involving the unlawful persecution of participants in the Revolution of Dignity. They were sentenced to prison terms ranging from 7 to 10 years.
According to the prosecutor’s office, prosecutors proved that in January 2014, the defendants participated in the violent suppression of protesters, unlawfully detained 22 participants in the Revolution of Dignity and other citizens, used physical violence against them, and fabricated evidence for their subsequent criminal prosecution.
The court sentenced the former commander of the Kyiv “Berkut” unit to 10 years in prison. Two of his subordinates and the former head of the Department for Combating Illegal Drug Trafficking at the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Kyiv each received eight-year prison terms. Two “titushki” coordinators were sentenced to seven years in prison. The former law enforcement officers were also stripped of their special ranks and barred from holding positions in law enforcement agencies.
The prosecutor’s office noted that on January 23, 2014, on Hrushevsky Street and what was then Shchorsa Street, law enforcement officers acted in concert with the “titushki.” During the unlawful detentions, they used physical force and special equipment, inflicted bodily harm on the victims, and damaged their property. Subsequently, according to the prosecution, based on falsified reports and false testimony from the detainees, the victims were groundlessly charged with criminal offenses for their alleged participation in mass riots.
The verdict was handed down on July 13, 2026, in a special judicial proceeding. The pretrial investigation was conducted by investigators from the State Bureau of Investigations.
The Office of the Prosecutor General noted that this is already the second conviction of the former commander of Kyiv’s “Berkut” unit for crimes committed during the Revolution of Dignity. In December 2025, the Podil District Court of Kyiv also sentenced him to 10 years in prison for the unlawful detention of and use of violence against protesters on January 20, 2014.
The Office of the Prosecutor General reported this on July 21.
As a reminder, the Obolon District Court of Kyiv dismissed the criminal case against “Berkut” officers Roman Tymkiv and Vitaliy Kuropas, who were accused of violence against Automaidan activists.
The commander of Berkut’s “black company” was convicted of destroying evidence of shootings on the Maidan.
