Today, February 8, the Felix Dzerzhinsky District Court of Kharkiv’s Shevchenkivsky District (Judge Kateryna Arkatova), following yesterday’s recess, approved the indictment and selected a preventive measure for Dmytro Lysenko. He is accused of driving a Toyota Land Cruiser 200 (registration number AX0412HX) belonging to Agrofirma Kolontaiv LLC while under the influence of drugs on November 11, 2021, running a red light at an intersection and hitting 13-year-olds Daria P. and Oleksandr M.
Fortunately, Daria sustained minor injuries. Oleksandr was less fortunate – his injuries were moderate, though considering the nature of the collision, one could say he was born under a lucky star.
SENS lawyers represent the victim Oleksandr M (shown under the vehicle’s wheels in the video).
During the pre-trial investigation, Mr. Lysenko admitted his guilt. He faces up to three years in prison, but considering his unserved probation for theft, the sentence could be 3 to 6 years of imprisonment.
Note that for this crime classification, 24-hour house arrest is the strictest preventive measure possible. Unlike pre-trial detention, time spent under house arrest will not count toward the sentence served.
The accused Lysenko is formally an ATO participant, but during his service in the National Guard, he did not participate in combat and has extremely negative character references.
Our side has filed a motion to broadcast the hearings on the judiciary website’s YouTube channel.
You can watch the February 7 court session video on our channel.
A notable aspect of this case is that the SUV driven by Mr. Lysenko actually belongs to the family of Yurii Raina – Head of the Kharkiv District Administration (Kharkiv District is the largest district in Ukraine). Yurii Raina’s wife owns the agricultural firm that owns the Land Cruiser. The Rainas’ son – Ivan – was previously caught twice by police in the same vehicle while under the influence of drugs, resulting in a 10-year driving ban. It was Ivan Raina who gave the vehicle to the accused.
The Raina-controlled “Agrofirma Kolontaiv” entrusted the Land Cruiser 200 to Ivan Raina, a drug user with a suspended license, who then entrusted it to Dmytro Lysenko. Methadone was found in Mr. Lysenko’s blood after the accident. Against this background, Yurii Raina’s participation as a speaker at the meeting on combating traffic accidents at the Kharkiv District Prosecutor’s Office appears quite cynical.
Yurii Raina, who entrusted the Land Cruiser 200 to his drug-addicted son, who then gave it to another drug user who hit children, participates in a joint meeting on road safety and transport operation
Note: We have no doubt that Ivan Raina was not behind the wheel at the time of the accident. The person who was actually driving is the one in the dock.
We will continue to inform the public about further developments in the case.