Shtselnykov admits to killing Parubiy and confirms that the weapon caches belong to him

Admission of guilt and reaction to evidence

On 12 October, the Frankivskyi District Court in Lviv continued hearing the criminal case against Mykhailo Shtselnykov, who is accused of murdering Andrii Parubiy. During the session, which began at 11:36, the defendant made a key statement, confirming his involvement in the crime and the presence of his weapons in the documented caches.

In the courtroom, in addition to Shtselnykov himself, his defence attorney Viktor Ponomarenko, prosecutor Taras Kovalchuk, the deceased's widow Uliana Parubiy, and the victims' lawyer Yurii Zoshii were present.

The court proceedings included a review of video recordings of the examination of physical evidence. Specifically, materials from 31 August 2025 were shown, in which specialists from the Lviv Scientific Research Expert-Criminalistic Centre of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine examined the details of a disassembled electric bicycle, which, according to the investigation, was used by the defendant on the day of the crime and subsequently dumped into a body of water. The recording captured the experts' actions in collecting traces from the saddle and handlebars of the vehicle.

Commenting on this stage, Mykhailo Shtselnykov expressed dissatisfaction with the length of the proceedings. He stated:

«Ви просто крадете гроші держави. Хлопцям (нацгвардійцям, — ред.) треба заплатити зарплату, адвокатам треба заплатити зарплату. Я не розумію, що ще вам треба сказати? Так, я стріляв! Що ще? Скільки можна з пустого в порожнє? Так, я стріляв, я вбив (...) Вам було простіше б в мене запитати, чи твій велосипед? Так, мій. Їхав на ньому? Так, їхав. Дивитися, витрачати час... я не розумію» (You are simply stealing the state's money. The guys (National Guard members, — ed.) need to be paid their salaries, the lawyers need to be paid their salaries. I don't understand what else you need me to say? Yes, I fired! What else? How long can you go from empty to empty? Yes, I fired, I killed (...) It would have been easier for you to ask me, is this your bicycle? Yes, it's mine. Did I ride on it? Yes, I did. Watching, wasting time... I don't understand).

The defence attorney added that the defence side does not understand the reason for the insistence on reviewing these video materials. The judge responded that the Criminal Procedure Code clearly regulates the procedure for examining evidence, which the court is obliged to follow regardless of the duration of the procedure. Uliana Parubiy emphasised that she is exercising her rights in accordance with the law.

Details of the discovery of weapons in the forest and at the cemetery

The court then moved on to reviewing the protocol of the scene examination dated 11 September 2025. Prosecutor Taras Kovalchuk read out that in the "Maiorivka" forest area in Lviv, a concealed cache was found in the root pit of a felled tree. It was hidden under a layer of rubbish, which included vodka bottles, branches, and leaves.

According to the protocol, experts removed the soil layer by layer with a shovel and found a G-shaped bundle wrapped in grey adhesive tape. Under the tape was a blue polyethylene bag, inside which were two inner bags. They contained an item resembling a dark-coloured Makarov pistol with dark burgundy grip panels and carved attachments for reducing gunshot noise. A separate cylindrical black item, visually resembling a silencer, without identification marks, was also found. The identification number of the pistol itself was worn off. At the time of the examination, the weapon was in a combat-ready position with the safety off.

Photographs of the found weapons were shown to the defendant. Mykhailo Shtselnykov confirmed that it was his pistol, recognising it by the non-standard extended barrel for a silencer and the specific packaging.

In addition, the prosecutor presented materials from the examination of the Lychakiv Cemetery. There, approximately 5–7 metres from the grave of Mykhailo Ivanovych Shtselnykov, behind a woman's headstone, disassembled hunting weapons were found. The defendant acknowledged ownership of these weapons but noted that he did not have a permit for them and did not remember their origin. He decided to hide them at the cemetery because it was "convenient".

Version about the pistol in the water body and a break in the session

The court also mentioned a pistol that, according to the defendant, was supposed to be in the lake. After several days of examining the water body, investigators did indeed find a rusty pistol there. However, Mykhailo Shtselnykov claimed that this weapon did not belong to him. He explained that it was a coincidence, and the gun had probably been left there by someone from the "criminal element".

Due to technical problems with playing back the video recordings, the court declared a break. The next session is scheduled for 14 October, starting at 11:00.