Destruction of an A-50U over Krasnodar Krai

Investigation in Russia

On 17 June 2024, the Khamovnichesky District Court of Moscow, at the request of the Investigative Committee, ordered the arrest in absentia of the commander of the 138th Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Colonel Mykola Dzyaman, in a case of a terrorist act resulting in the death of a person (clause “b” of part 3 of article 205 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). According to the investigation, Dzyaman ordered the shooting down of an aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces that was patrolling Russian airspace on 23 February 2024. The serviceman, the Investigative Committee believes, knew that the aircraft carried no weapons and was not intended for combat operations. Dzyaman's actions led to the deaths of 10 crew members and the destruction of the aircraft, the agency claims. On 22 January 2025, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Mykola Dzyaman in absentia to life imprisonment on charges of a terrorist act resulting in the death of a person (clause “b” of part 3 of article 205 of the Criminal Code), the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation reports.