Czechia sentences Czech ex-soldier to prison for looting in Ukraine

A court in Prague, Czechia, has sentenced a former Czech soldier, Filip Siman, who went to fight as a volunteer in Ukraine, to seven years in prison for looting. 

As reported by ČTK, he was found guilty of the crime of looting in a war zone. 

State prosecutor Martin Bílý said that, according to his information, Siman’s case is the first-ever conviction for this crime in connection with the war in Ukraine. 

The verdict is not yet final. The defendant tried to justify himself, stating, among other things, that he was following orders from his command. 

"The defendant was found guilty both on the basis of video recordings he made in Ukraine and on the basis of eyewitness testimony," said Hana Krestýnová, the chair of the Prague City Court panel. 

Filip Siman, 27, travelled to Ukraine at the end of March 2022 and joined the Ukrainian volunteer battalion Carpathian Sich.

In Ukraine, Siman served in Irpin and Bucha, where he was tasked with patrolling trenches and conducting so-called mopping-up operations. According to the court's verdict, while carrying out orders and in his free time, he appropriated the belongings of both civilians and dead soldiers, such as wedding rings, other jewellery, gold and silver bars, and cash. 

In April 2022, Siman was detained by the Ukrainian army and subsequently returned to Czechia. 

Siman also faced charges of illegal service in a foreign armed force, as he joined the fighting in Ukraine without the permission of the Czech president. However, the court acquitted him of this charge.

His trial began last month. The prosecutor demanded 10 years in prison for Siman. 

The term was shortened as Siman had no previous convictions.