28 November 2001
Prosecutor challenges acquittal verdict in priest murder retrial
Brest Regional Prosecutor Valery Omelyanyuk has challenged the acquittal verdict passed by the Brest Regional Court on Gennady Kolesnikov, a former Orthodox deacon previously convicted of the 1998 murder of local priest Mikhail Satsyuk.
Mr. Kolesnikov was sentenced to 20 years in jail in July 2000 after confessing to killing the priest over sexual harassment on the victim's part. The Supreme Court of Belarus vacated the sentence for "lack of evidence," remanding the case for retrial. The Brest Regional Court
acquitted the ex-deacon last week.
The Prosecutor's Office took the verdict as a "slap in the face." One officer said their case against Mr. Kolesnikov was airtight, adding that the Church must have been behind the acquittal verdict. Prosecutor Omelyanyuk filed his appeal with the Supreme Court on November 27.
http://brestonline.com/en/news/news112.html