Russian soldier pleads guilty in war crimes trial

A 21-year-old Russian soldier has pleaded guilty to killing an unarmed civilian, in the first war crimes trial in Ukraine since the war started.

Vadim Shishimarin admitted shooting a 62-year-old man a few days after the invasion began. He faces life in jail.

The prisoner was brought into the tiny Kyiv courtroom in handcuffs, flanked by heavily armed guards. He looked nervous, and kept his head bowed.

Just a couple of metres from him, the widow of the man killed was sitting.

She wiped tears from her eyes as the soldier entered court, then sat with hands clasped as the prosecutor set out his case, describing the moment Kateryna’s husband was shot in the head.

“Do you accept your guilt?” the judge asked. “Yes,” Shishimarin replied.

“Totally?” “Yes,” he replied quietly from behind the glass of his grey metal-and-glass cage.

Prosecutors say Shishimarin was commanding a unit in a tank division when his convoy came under attack.

He and four other soldiers stole a car, and as they travelled near Chupakhivka, they encountered the 62-year-old on a bicycle, they said.

According to prosecutors, Shishimarin was ordered to kill the civilian and used a Kalashnikov assault rifle to do so.

The Kremlin said earlier it was not informed about the case.

Shishimarin’s trial was adjourned shortly after the civilian’s widow heard for the first time the Russian soldier admit to the murder. This high profile hearing will restart on Thursday in a larger courtroom.

“By this first trial, we are sending a clear signal that every perpetrator, every person who ordered or assisted in the commission of crimes in Ukraine shall not avoid responsibility,” Ukraine’s chief prosecutor Iryna Venediktova tweeted.

Prosecutors say more trials of this nature are to come, although Moscow has denied its troops have targeted civilians.

The International Criminal Court has been investigating whether there is evidence war crimes are taking place and is sending a team of 42 investigators, forensics experts and support staff to the country.

Ukraine has also set up a team to preserve evidence to enable future prosecutions.