Convicted for the Murder of Motorola: What is Known about the Ukrainians Accused by Russia of Blowing Up a Pro-Russian Separatist Battalion Commander
The Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don has sentenced four Ukrainians accused of attempting to assassinate the so-called head of the ‘DNR,’ Oleksandr Zakharchenko, and the murder of the commander of a pro-Russian separatist battalion, Arsen Pavlov, known by his call sign ‘Motorola.’
The main defendant in this case is Oleksandr Pohorielov. As Russian media reports, he was sentenced to life imprisonment in a strict regime colony. Along with Pohorielov, three civilians were also convicted: Oleksandr Tymoshenko — to 12 years in jail, Vasyl Churylov and Artem Yena — to 13 and 17 years in a strict regime colony, respectively.
Forty-five-year-old Oleksandr Pohorielov, a construction worker, was detained on November 30, 2017, while crossing the Olenivka checkpoint. His mother told the MIHR that her son was supposed to return to Kyiv that day.
— I saw Sasha off to the bus, and he promised to call once he crossed the contact line, — she recounts. — But that evening, there was no call. We thought he hadn’t made it before the checkpoint closed, so he stayed overnight in the ‘gray zone,’ and his phone ran out of battery.
Oleksandr Pohorielov, sentenced to life imprisonment in Russia. Photo: Russian media
However, there was still no news from Oleksandr in the morning. So, the family went to the local ‘police,’ where they were advised to write a missing person notice and post it on social media. But that didn’t help. A few days after Oleksandr’s departure, a search was conducted at his parents’ house in Donetsk.
The family continued to search for the man, but everywhere they heard the same response, “We don’t have such a person; we don’t have any information.”
— We found him only on February 17, 2018, in a detention center in Donetsk. We just asked if we could send a parcel to Oleksandr Pohorielov, and they accepted it, — Oleksandr’s mother recalls.
For the first time after his abduction, the family saw Pohorielov on Russian television on September 17, 2018. The report covered that the man was accused of the attempted assassination of the terrorist leader Oleksandr Zakharchenko, who was blown up on August 31, 2018.
Oleksandr Zakharchenko, the first head of the so-called ‘DNR.’ Photo: Russian media
Based on the Russian investigation, the man followed Zakharchenko’s movements, filmed them, and passed them to the SSU. In August 2017, he allegedly placed explosives in the men’s room of the Donetsk restaurant ‘Pushkin,’ which was frequented by the leader of the ‘DNR.’ However, the explosives were found, and Zakharchenko survived.
The second part of Pohorielov’s case concerns his alleged involvement in the murder of the commander of a pro-Russian separatist battalion, Arsen Pavlov, known by the call sign ‘Motorola.’ According to the Russian investigation, in October 2016, Oleksandr supposedly, on the instructions of the SSU, installed explosives on the elevator roof in the building where ‘Motorola’ lived. The explosives were later detonated, resulting in Pavlov’s death.
Arsen Pavlov (‘Motorola’), the assassinated commander of a battalion of pro-Russian separatists. Photo: Russian media
The case also states that Pohorielov, along with his acquaintance Oleksandr Tymoshenko, allegedly provided the Ukrainian special services with data on the location of military equipment and firing positions of the so-called ‘DPR’ militants. The Russian investigation alleges that to organize the assassination, Pohorielov and Tymoshenko engaged Vasyl Churylov, who supposedly collected data on Pavlov’s movements, and Artem Yen, who, in investigators’ opinion, collected information on the location of rooms in the ‘Nadiia’ restaurant and hotel complex, where Motorola was temporarily living.
Oleksandr Pohorielov’s family learned that he had been held in a solitary cell in the basement of the Donetsk detention center for a long time. The so-called ‘court hearings’ also began in Donetsk. After the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, the man was transferred to a detention center in Rostov, where the so-called ‘trial’ continued. Along with Pohorielov, Oleksandr Tymoshenko was also transferred there. Before that, he had also been held in the basement of the Donetsk detention center.
Сonvicted Ukrainians behind a glass wall during the trial. From left to right: Vasyl Churylov, Artem Yena, and Oleksandr Pohorielov. Photo: Russian media
Artem Yena, a resident of Donetsk, was detained by the Russians in February 2017. He was held for a while in the secret prison ‘Izoliatsiia.’ Sixty-eight-year-old Vasyl Churylov was also detained in Donetsk.
Before the verdict was announced during the last ‘trial hearing,’ the defendants pleaded not guilty. Pohorielov claimed that he confessed to the crime under torture.
This article has been prepared with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands.
