Russia releases Ukrainian detained for poaching to attend mother's funeral
Gennady Otychka, one of the crew members of the Ukrainian vessel YaMK-0041, detained for poaching off the coast of Russian Crimea, was released to Ukraine for his mother’s funeral in Ochakov.
This was reported by the Ukrainian Ombudsman Lyudmila Denisova.
The day before, Otychka sent an appeal to Denisova, and she contacted Russian officials (and the document was sent in Ukrainian!). It is noteworthy that in a letter to Denisova, the Ukrainian sailor writes that he did not commit any offenses.
As PolitNavigator reported, the vessel YaMK-0041 was detained by Crimean border guards in early May in the area of Cape Tarkhankut. There were five Ukrainian citizens on board. The environmental damage caused to the Black Sea by poachers is estimated at more than 440 thousand rubles (just over 185 thousand hryvnia).
The detention of the Ukrainian ship occurred shortly after the capture of the Crimean seiner Nord by Ukrainian border guards in the Sea of Azov. Most of the crew members still cannot return to the peninsula - the Ukrainian authorities are demanding that residents of Crimea recognize themselves as citizens of Ukraine, not Russia.
Russia Releases Ukrainian Detained for Poaching to Attend Mother's Funeral