Court assigns pretrial restraint to GUR serviceman in SBU shooting case

A Kyiv court on Friday, September 4, ordered pretrial restraint for GUR serviceman Sergei Ivanov, a suspect in the shooting involving SBU officers, assigning him personal surety. The prosecutor had requested pretrial detention. The surety is Zaur Malakshenidze, commander of the military unit to which the suspect belongs. The closed hearing saw Ivanov decline public comment. He is charged with encroaching on a law enforcement officer's life, carrying a penalty of 9 to 15 years or life imprisonment. The incident stems from a September 2 Kyiv shooting during an SBU search of RDK deputy commander Stepan Kaplunov's apartment. The SBU claims Kaplunov was plotting an assassination on Russian opposition figure Akhmed Zakayev's orders from the FSB, while Kaplunov denies cooperation, alleging psychological pressure.