Ex-chief of Odesa region's main police branch suspected of negligence during Odesa events on May 2, 2014 under house arrest
Pechersky Court of Kyiv has accepted the demand of the Prosecutor General's Office of Ukraine (PGO) calling for former head of the Interior Ministry's police branch in Odesa region Petro Lutsiuk to be placed under house arrest, as he is suspected of negligence during the tragic events in Odesa on May 2, 2014.
According to the PGO press service, house arrest is the severest form of restraint possible according to the law.
On April 30, the PGO notified Lutsiuk of being suspected of neglecting his duties during the tragic events in Odesa on May 2, 2014.
"As a result of the pre-trial investigation, the former head of the Ukrainian Interior Ministry's main department in Odesa region on April 30, 2015, was notified of the suspicion of committing criminal negligence," the PGO press service reported on Saturday without specifying the name of the suspect.
Investigators established that the leadership of the Interior Ministry's agencies didn't ensure proper protection of public order on May 2, 2014, which allowed a column of people, participants of the For Unity march and an organized group of people who tried to prevent the march, to clash on Hretska Street in Odesa.
The clashes led to mass disturbances, which spread to Kulykove Pole near the House of Trade Unions, completely out of the control of the Interior Ministry.
As a result, in the vicinity of Hretska Square, 18 people were shot, six of them died. A fire in the House of Trade Unions killed 42 people, ten of whom jumped to their deaths from the building while trying to escape the fire, and 32 died as a result of poisoning from carbon monoxide and combustible products. A total of 250 people were injured during the riots, the PGO said.
The press service also said that a hunt has been launched for the former deputy chief of Odesa regional police Dmytro Fuchedzhi who is suspected of committing official crimes.
On the day of the tragedy, the Ukrainian Interior Ministry's main department in Odesa region was headed by Petro Lutsiuk. On May 3, 2014, he was dismissed by Interior Minister Arsen Avakov.
