Court finds Pivdennoukrainsk mayor guilty of beating deputy and imposes fine

Court finds Pivdennoukrainsk mayor guilty of beating deputy and imposes fine
Court finds Pivdennoukrainsk mayor guilty of beating deputy and imposes fine

Court ruling on the city mayor

The Arbuzynskyi District Court of Mykolaiv Oblast handed down a verdict against Valerii Onufriienko, the mayor of Pivdennoukrainsk. He was found guilty of beating his deputy, Mariia Drozdova. Following the review, the case was reclassified from violence against an official to causing minor bodily harm.

The judge imposed a fine of 850 hryvnia on Onufriienko but exempted him from actual punishment due to the expiration of the statute of limitations. In addition, the convicted man was ordered to pay the victim 10,000 hryvnia as compensation for moral damage.

Circumstances of the incident

The conflict between the head of the community and his deputy arose on 3 March 2022. The cause of the dispute was the issue of city residents' access to a school shelter. According to the facts established by the court, during the altercation, Onufriienko hit Drozdova at least three times on the shoulder, neck, and head, after which he knocked her to the floor.

The city mayor insisted on his innocence, claiming that his actions were necessitated by self-defence. Meanwhile, the results of the forensic examination confirmed that the deputy sustained bodily injuries.

Prospects for retaining the position

Once this verdict takes legal effect, Valerii Onufriienko may be stripped of his position as city mayor. Such a decision may be made in accordance with Article 79 of the Law of Ukraine "On Local Self-Government".

It is worth noting that in 2022, deputies had already removed Onufriienko from office, but in 2024, a court reinstated him in his powers. The current decision of the court of first instance may still be appealed.

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