Pro-Russian tank gunner in Mariupol jails in Ukraine

• A pro-Russian tank gunner who was accused of opening fire on Mariupol’s residential structures will serve 12 years in prison.
• After the Ukrainian military attacked his tank in April, he was captured close to the settlement of Rivnopil.
• SBU said that he was found guilty of high treason.

A pro-Russian tank gunner who was accused of opening fire on Mariupol’s residential structures will serve 12 years in prison, according to the State Security Service (SBU) of Ukraine.

“The Security Service of Ukraine collected indisputable evidence of crimes committed by the militant of the ‘DPR’ [Donetsk People’s Republic] terrorist organization nicknamed ‘Phil,’” the SBU said in a statement. “The evidence allowed the court to imprison him for 12 years.”

As the gunner of a T-72 tank, the SBU said that the man “fired at least 20 shots at residential high-rise buildings in Mariupol.”

The SBU said that he was found guilty of high treason and the “creation of unauthorized armed groups or participation in its activities.”

After the Ukrainian military attacked his tank in April, he was captured close to the settlement of Rivnopil in the east.

The individual reportedly joined separatist, pro-Russian fighters in 2014, and after the full-scale invasion in February this year, he joined Russia’s 8th Army.

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