The suspect is actually destroying something of national importance that is protected by law, the UCP notes.
Russian archaeologist State Hermitage suspected of Illegal search of a cultural heritage site of Ukraine on the Crimean Peninsula (Part 4 of Article 298 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). The Office of the Prosecutor General (OGP) reported this on its Telegram channel.
The message does not indicate the name of the Russian suspect, but judging by the description of the regalia, activities and blurry photos, we are talking about the historian and archaeologist Alexander Butyagin.
“According to the investigation, the suspect has been working in the field of archaeological research for a long time and holds the position of head of the ancient archeology sector in Russia. State Hermitage. After the conquest of the peninsula, until today, as the head of the Myrmekian archaeological expedition of the Hermitage, without any permits from the competent authorities of Ukraine, the archaeologist illegally conducts excavations at a cultural heritage site – the Ancient city of Myrmekii in Kerch,” the UCP said.
The suspect is actually destroying a legally protected area of national importance.
The SBU added that Butyagin led an expedition in 2014, which was personally visited by Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and has been conducting illegal excavations at a Ukrainian cultural heritage site in Crimea for more than 10 years.
The suspect group carried out illegal excavations in an area of hundreds of square meters, as a result of which the invaders removed the so-called cultural layer of the Ukrainian peninsula to a depth of about 2 m.
The occupation administration, during the 10 years of Russia’s occupation of the peninsula, has been promoting illegal archaeological excavations, leading to the destruction of Ukrainian cultural heritage sites.
The occupiers also carry out illegal restorations of such objects to distort Crimea’s history and show its “Russian” side.
Let us remind you that in the temporarily occupied Crimea, Russian archaeologists and developers completely destroy the Tauride Chersonese.
Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.