Photo from UNIAN
Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych's lawyer Vitaliy Serdiuk says his client will not come to Kyiv for questioning in the Prosecutor General's Office (PGO) on charges of high treason, which is scheduled for January 27, according to Russian news agency TASS.
Serdiuk said that the lawyers would arrive in Ukraine instead of Yanukovych.
"The defense team will arrive in response to this summons, abiding by the procedures, and will report on the current valid reasons preventing Yanukovych from coming in person," Serdiuk said.
At the same time, he stressed that "Article 138 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine provides for the possibility not to appear when summoned by an investigator if there are such reasons as a long stay abroad and a threat to life, which has not ceased to exist, but on the contrary, has increased due these political processes."
Read alsoEvidence of treason: UN confirms Yanukovych asked Kremlin to deploy troops in UkraineIn addition, the lawyer said that the defense would re-submit to the PGO a statement proving Yanukovych's life is under threat.
"Both by issuing this summons for questioning and committing a number of other procedural violations, the Prosecutor General's Office 'helps' the defense do their job," Serdiuk said.
As UNIAN reported earlier, the PGO summoned ex-President Yanukovych, who now resides in Russia, for questioning in Ukraine as a suspect in the treason case.