Former President Viktor Yanukovych has received new criminal charges on Nov. 5.
The State Bureau of Investigation and the Office of the Prosecutor General accused him of leading a criminal group comprised of former officials of the Interior Ministry, Security Service and the Armed Forces, all of whom are suspected of violent terrorist actions during the EuroMaidan Revolution protests in February 2014.
These protests eventually led to Yanukovych’s abdication of power and flight from Ukraine to Russia.
According to the bureau’s statement, Yanukovych’s group exceeded its authority, unlawfully blocked demonstrations and terrorized the population by murdering and inflicting grievous injuries on protesters.
During the EuroMaidan Revolution’s climax from Feb. 18 to Feb. 20, 2014, over 100 protesters and a dozen police officers were killed, most of them gunned down in the streets. They became known as the Heavenly Hundred.
According to the latest charges, Yanukovych’s group is suspected of killing 76 people and injuring more than 800 over those few days.
The pre-trial investigation is underway and charges against other members of the group are pending.
In 2019, Yanukovych was found guilty of high treason and abetting Russia in waging a war against Ukraine in 2014. He was sentenced to 13 years of imprisonment in absentia. The ex-president called the trial a sham.
