Recruitment of Mayor Ochakiv and cooperation with Russia: the Mykolaiv court has started consideration of the case of high treason

In the Factory District Court of Mykolaiv on Tuesday, February 6, the trial of the case of Ochak official Eduard Shevchenko, who is accused of cooperating with Russian special services and trying to recruit Mayor Serhii Bychkov, began.

This was reported by the correspondent of NikVesti.

According to the case materials, back in 2018, representatives of the occupation authorities of the so-called «DPR» involved Eduard Shevchenko in collecting information that was passed on to the FSB of the Russian Federation.

At that time, he held the position of head of the anti-submarine warfare and anti-submarine diversion support operational-combat support of the headquarters of the Armed Forces Navy Command. After the start of cooperation, Shevchenko received the call sign «Kobzar».

The prosecution claims that in 2018, he passed on information about his subordinate unit of the Ukrainian Security Service, defense plans and military activities to the special services of the Russian Federation. In addition, secret information about the participation of officers of the Armed Forces of Great Britain in the planning of combat operations of the Armed Forces of Ukraine was revealed.

In March 2019, during a personal meeting with a representative of the Russian intelligence agency, Eduard Shevchenko was informed of plans to launch a full-scale attack on the southern regions of Ukraine. After that, the defendant continued to provide information in exchange for a guarantee of safety from the Russians for him and his family members.

According to the investigation, at the beginning of the full-scale war, Eduard Shevchenko continued to cooperate with the enemy. In particular, in June 2022, he contacted the representative of the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces Serhii Kolesnikov and another agent of the Russian Federation named Yevgeny through the Telegram messenger.

He sent them the results of the flights and their consequences. One of the correspondence mentions strikes on the 73rd Naval Center of the SO.

«Heard that the location of the 73rd was hollowed out. Did you get it?», the representatives of the Russian Federation asked Eduard Shevchenko.

«By. The man's house was almost demolished, but he did not get into the PPD,» he answered.

Eduard Shevchenko was arrested in March 2023 on charges of treason.

At the trial, he stated that he did not admit his guilt. Also, during the meeting, Eduard Shevchenko objected to journalists photographing him with a video camera.

It is worth noting that he not only headed the department of the Ochakov City Council, which is responsible for security in the city, but is also a former commander of the 73rd Naval Special Forces Center, a veteran of the ATO and a knight of state orders.

In an interview with journalists, he spoke negatively about his years of service in the ranks of the Armed Forces, because of the unfair level of support for servicemen.

How is the mayor of Ochakov related to the case of treason?

During the detention of Eduard Shevchenko in March 2023, the SBU reported, in particular, that he had tried to recruit Serhii Bychkov.

According to the case, in 2023, when Eduard Shevchenko held the position of head of the department of protection and surveillance of the housing and communal services department of the Ochakiv city council, he received a task from Serhii Kolesnikov to recruit the mayor for a loyal relationship. In a direct conversation with Bychkov in the city council, Shevchenko said that representatives of the Russian Federation want to talk to the mayor.

«He is very careful. He proposed through me,» he told Kolesnikov at the time after communicating with the Ochakiv mayor.

Even after his arrest, Eduard Shevchenko said that he was surprised by the SBU release, which stated that he tried to recruit mayor Serhiy Bychkov to work for the Russians.

The Deputy Chairman of the Public Control Council of the Bureau of Economic Security of Ukraine, Denys Zhelo , commented on the lack of claims by law enforcement officers against Ochakov Mayor Serhiy Bychkov, whose colleague was arrested for treason. According to Denys Zhelo, the mayor of Ochakov Serhiy Bychkov «was friends in all directions with the Russian intelligence agent Eduard Shevchenko».

Eduard Shevchenko himself noted that he considers Serhii Bychkov to be the most effective mayor of all those who were in Ochakiv.

It is worth noting that the mayor was almost always closed to communication with the media. Commenting on this, the head of Mykolayiv RMA Vitalii Kim suggested that Serhii Bychkov does not address the community and does not report on the results of his work because he is a «non-public person».

High-profile cases of treason in Mykolaiv

In early April 2022, the head of the Mykolaiv District Prosecutor's Office was detained for cooperation with the occupiers. Prosecutor Hennadii Herman was arrested.

In January 2023, during a court hearing in the Primorskyi District Court of Odesa, it became known that the prosecutor, who was accused of treason, passed on data to the Russian propaganda blogger Yurii Podoliak and one of the leaders of the «DNR», the field commander of the illegal armed formation «Donbas Militia» Ihor Bezler.

Then the traitorous prosecutor admitted that he was directing fire at the building of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration, which was hit by a cruise missile in March 2022.

On June 28, 2023, according to the decision of the Odessa court, Herman was found guilty of treason.

On August 10, 2023, the Mykolaiv public prosecutor's lawyers filed an appeal. On September 15, the appeal was heard in the Odesa Court of Appeal.

Hennadii Herman is also associated with launching a missile attack in March 2022 on the barracks in Mykolaiv, where a large number of soldiers died.