Two Ukrainians who were in pre-trial detention in the Netherlands have been released to fight against the Russians in their own country. The court of Zeeland-West-Brabant decided that yesterday. The detention ended at 11 a.m. this morning.
The men, aged 27 and 29, come from Lutsk, in northwestern Ukraine. They had been in custody for six months. They were arrested in September last year on a sailing yacht, with which they wanted to bring a group of Albanians to Great Britain. Human smuggling is a criminal offense punishable by a maximum prison sentence of 18 years.
The Ukrainians were held in the penitentiary in Ter Apel. Their lawyer asked for the men to be released because they want to return to Ukraine to fight against the Russians.
penetrating wish
The court ruled that because of the war there are special, serious circumstances that justify suspension of the pre-trial detention. The court points to the appeal of the government in Ukraine to its inhabitants to defend the country. According to the judges, the suspects have “the penetrating desire to comply with that call”. It also points out the importance of suspects to be with their families in Ukraine.
As conditions, the court states that the suspects report again if ordered to do so and that if they are convicted, they will serve their sentence. Furthermore, the requirement is that the men do not commit any new offenses during the suspension of detention.
No guarantee
Press judge Carine Marsé emphasizes that the men still have to stand trial. Even if they are not there themselves. When asked what guarantee there is that the Ukrainians will actually serve a pronounced sentence, Marsé says that they will be arrested if they come back to the Netherlands. “The Public Prosecution Service deals with the execution of the sentences, but in principle it is not customary to actively collect people from abroad for this.”
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