12:14 20.10.2017

Culprit of deadly road accident in Kharkiv refused to give evidence

2 min read
Culprit of deadly road accident in Kharkiv refused to give evidence

Kharkiv's Kyivsky District Court will consider on Friday, October 20, a petition to select a measure of restraint against a 20-year-old resident of Kharkiv, the driver of a Lexus that ploughed into a crowd of pedestrians in the city center, killing five.

"The measure of restraint will be selected at Kyivsky District Court tomorrow [on October 20]," Kharkiv regional police chief Oleh Bekh said at a briefing on Thursday, October 19.

He also confirmed that the woman was behind the wheel of the car, which belongs to her stepfather.

"This has been confirmed. The owner of the vehicle will be summoned by the investigators for interrogation," Bekh said.

He said that the culprit of the road accident had been brought to administrative liability four times for violating traffic rules under Parts 1 and 3, Article 132 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses in 2016 and twice in 2017.

The head of the investigation department, Serhiy Chyzh, who also took part in the briefing, in turn, said that the detainee had been granted a lawyer from the legal aid center and her rights had been explained. The woman refused to testify, referring to Article 63 of the Constitution of Ukraine.

As reported, late on October 18, at the intersection of Sumska Street and Mechnykova Lane in Kharkiv, a Lexus RX car, driven by a 20-year-old woman, moving at red light, collided with a Volkswagen Touareg, driven by 49-year-old man. As a result of the collision, the Lexus moved to the sidewalk on Sumska Street and ploughed into 11 pedestrians, killing five of them on the spot (four women and a young man). The others were taken to medical facilities.

The Lexus driver was detained. The accident is investigated under Part 3, Article 286 (violation of traffic safety rules, which resulted in the death of several people) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The article foresees up to ten years of imprisonment.

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