The person suspected of murdering TOR T elevision C ompany director Ihor Aleksandrov (See The Day, No. 20 for July 10, 2001 and No. 21 of July 17, 2001) has been arrested and is being questioned, Ukraine’s Deputy Prosecutor General Serhiy Vynokurov told journalists in Slovyansk, Valery Prudskoi, Slovyansk SAT Television Company director, told The Day. The deputy prosecutor declined to reveal the possible motives for the murder and the suspect’s name. As Mr. Vynokurov put it, the police have cleared up the circumstances of the journalist’s murder. The suspect has been detained and the court has sanctioned his arrest. According to the deputy prosecutor general, the police have collected information proving that Aleksandrov’s murder is not connected to his journalistic activity. When requested to make a social portrait of the suspect, Mr.Vynokurov refused, suggesting that the suspect’s lawyer be asked such questions. The statement made by a Prosecutor General’s Office representative on August 27 runs counter to investigators’ preliminary conclusions which Ukraine’s Prosecutor General Mykhailo Potebenko, Interior Minister Yury Smyrnov and Security service deputy head Yury Vanadin reported to mass media representatives in mid- August.
Late at night on August 27 employee of the Luhansk Efir-1 Television Company Oleksiy Movsesian was severely beaten by an 18 years old student, who was immediately arrested. Earlier Luhansk prosecutor’s office brought an action against Volodymyr Landyk, deputy of the Luhansk city council, for assaulting Movsesian and his colleague Olha Kuznetsova. It is reported that recently Movsesian was suggested a job in a new company under condition that he recalls his complaint against Landyk, but the journalist refused.
Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee On Freedom of Press and Information Oleksandr Zynchenko turned to the leaders of the Ministry of the Internal Affairs with a request to take under special control all crimes committed against journalists. According to Mr. Zynchenko, last Friday First Deputy Minister of the Internal Affairs Mykola Dzhyha informed him that Movsesian and Aleksandrov’s cases are under the Internal Affairs Ministry’s special oversight.
