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Kiev court to hear case of abducted Russian servicemen in early February — source

Еhe servicemen, abducted by Ukrainian security services, are accused of treason and desertion

KIEV, January 26. /TASS/. A court in the Ukrainian capital Kiev will hear the case of Russian servicemen Maxim Odintsov and Alexander Baranov, abducted by Ukrainian security services in Crimea late last year, on February 2 and 6, a source close to Ukrainian diplomatic circles told TASS Thursday.

"Odintsov and Baranov were convoyed to Kiev, because they refused to testify via a video linkup. Their cases will be heard separately by the Darnitsky District Court of Kiev, on February 2 and 6," the source said.

Odintsov and Baranov are the former Ukrainian servicemen who joined the Russian army after Crimea’s reunification with Russia in 2014. They were abducted by the Ukrainian Security Service officers on November 20, 2016 and taken to Ukraine’s Nikolayev Region. Ukraine’s SBU accused the servicemen of treason and desertion.

They face up to 15 years in prison.

The Ukrainian side did not let Russian diplomats to visit the detainees, saying the two were still Ukrainian nationals as they failed to undergo all procedures needed to waive their citizenship.