Appeal court commutes life sentence of Russian soldier who killed a civilian to 15 years behind bars

The board of judges of the Kyiv Court of Appeals, headed by Oleksandr Kyiashko, changed the verdict of Russian soldier Vadim Shishimarin from life sentence to 15 years of imprisonment, Graty reports. The investigation found that the man shot an unarmed civilian in Ukraine in February.

A Kyiv court issued the first sentence to a Russian service member for a crime against a civilian on May 23. 21-year-old sergeant Vadim Shishimarin was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of a Sumy region resident, which was announced during the court hearing.

Background

21-year-old Sergeant Vadim Shishimarin is the commander of the 4th Guards Kantemirovskaya Tank Division of the Moscow Region. He is accused of killing a civilian in the Sumy region, 62-year-old Oleksandr Shelipov.

According to the investigation, on February 28, 2022, Shishimarin killed Shelipov in the village of Chupakhivka, Sumy region. The deceased was riding a bicycle along the roadside.

Prior to that, the column, which included Shishimarin, was defeated by the Ukrainian army. While fleeing, he and four other occupiers fired at a private car and seized it. The Russian military drove into the village in a stolen car with punctured wheels.

According to the investigation, on the way they saw a man returning home and talking on the phone. One of the servicemen ordered the sergeant to kill a civilian so that he would not report them to the Armed Forces. He fired several shots through the open window of a car from a Kalashnikov assault rifle into the head of a 62-year-old victim. The man died on the spot just a few dozen meters from his home.