The statement made by ex-President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych demanding to interrogate him in Rostov-on-Don (Russia) is an attempt to postpone his placement on the wanted list, if he does not appear for interrogation in the case of the “Kharkiv agreements” again, on Feb. 3, prosecutor says.
“This statement has nothing to do with jurisprudence … the criminal procedural legislation does not provide for the requirement of a suspect for an investigator to come to him … they are trying to find a valid reason to postpone the procedure for putting him on the wanted list,” Deputy Head of the Department of Procedural Guidance on Maidan cases of the Prosecutor General’s Office, prosecutor in the “Yanukovych case” Denys Ivanov told Interfax-Ukraine.
According to him, Yanukovych was officially summoned to the investigator for interrogation as a suspect in the Kharkiv agreements case.
“The suspect does not appear at the prosecutor and the investigator on summons… and offers to come to him in a non-procedural way to draw up procedural documents on the territory of another state where other procedural legislation is in force,” the prosecutor said.
At the same time, he emphasized that the investigation is ready to take part in procedural actions if there is an appropriate petition for the prosecutor to appeal to the competent authorities of the Russian Federation, and they will fulfill this international legal order. Also, as Ivanov explained, Yanukovych can apply to the competent authorities of the Russian Federation with such a request.
The prosecutor noted: “If Yanukovych does not appear for interrogation on Feb. 3, then he will be put on the wanted list in this case … I do not know his whereabouts.”
Ivanov clarified that as part of the investigation into the events of Feb. 18-20, 2014 on the Maidan of Independence in Kyiv, the investigation appealed to the competent authorities of the Russian Federation to confirm the whereabouts of Yanukovych, but was refused. Also, according to the prosecutor, the investigation authorities asked the Russian Federation to interrogate Yanukovych in this case, which was also refused.
“The competent authorities of the Russian Federation do not cooperate in this direction, they do not fulfill requests,” Ivanov said.
He added that the situation is similar with the investigation of the seizure of power by non-constitutional amendments to the Constitution of Ukraine.
“Requests are not fulfilled in the Russian Federation, his place of residence at the address is not confirmed, no one interrogates him and no one involves us in his interrogation,” he said.
