Ukraine’s ex-minister of foreign affairs detained on suspicion of murder (Photos)

“Former Ukrainian Foreign Minister Leonid Kozhara has just been detained by police on suspicion of intentionally killing a citizen in his own house,” Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Anton Gerashchenko said on Facebook on March 25.

Read alsoBusinessman reportedly shot dead in ex-Foreign Minister Kozhara’s house outside Kyiv – media

According to Gerashchenko, Kozhara is now en route to the courtroom where the judge is to decide on his preventive measure.

As UNIAN reported earlier, ex-head of the Inter TV channel, general director of the Atlantic Group holding Serhiy Starytsky was shot dead in the house of Kozhara and his wife, Maryna Kozerod, in the village of Chaiky outside Kyiv on February 21.

The incident was reported to the police by Kozerod. The preliminary theory was that the victim committed suicide while Kozhara and his wife were in other rooms of the house. Police at the scene seized a firearm, cartridges and a cartridge case.

Criminal proceedings were opened under Part 1 of Article 115 of the Criminal Code (intentional homicide) while “suicide” remained a major theory.

On February 22, the police reported that the criminal proceedings had been re-qualified from suicide to intentional homicide.

On March 4, an investigative experiment took place as part of the case, but its conclusions are not to be disclosed being confidential while the pretrial investigation is under way.