Police officers broke down the door and detained the attacker, who was holding a knife, standing right over a pensioner who was bleeding profusely. The elderly man is in intensive care in critical condition.
A horrific case of domestic violence nearly turned into a fatal tragedy in the city of Khust. Only the vigilance of neighbors and the lightning-fast response of the police emergency team saved the life of an 80-year-old local resident whom his own son had tried to stab to death.
According to the Main Directorate of the National Police in Zakarpattia Oblast, the incident occurred on November 2 at approximately 4:40 p.m.
Storming the House and Subduing the Attacker
A resident of the street raised the alarm: upon hearing desperate cries for help coming from a neighbor’s house, the woman immediately dialed “102.”
When the police unit arrived at the specified address, the door to the apartment was locked from the inside. No one responded to repeated lawful demands to open the door and cease the unlawful actions, and moans could be heard from inside. Assessing the real threat to a person’s life, the police decided to force their way into the home.
Upon entering the room, the officers were met with a horrifying scene:
- the 80-year-old homeowner was lying unconscious on the floor in a pool of blood;
- standing over him, holding a bloodied knife, was an unstable, aggressive man.
The police officers reacted instantly, used hand-to-hand combat techniques, disarmed the suspect, and handcuffed him. The attacker turned out to be the 47-year-old son of the injured retiree.
The victim’s injuries and evidence of the crime
As investigators from the investigative-operational team determined, during a sudden conflict, the son attacked his elderly father with a kitchen knife, inflicting numerous cuts and stab wounds to his head, face, and upper and lower limbs.
The 80-year-old victim, suffering from massive blood loss, was rushed by ambulance to the intensive care unit of a local hospital, where doctors are currently fighting to save his life.
The assailant was detained in accordance with Article 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine. The weapon used in the crime—a knife—was seized. Biological samples were taken from the suspect for testing to determine the presence of alcohol or narcotics.
Criminal Liability
Police investigators, under the procedural guidance of the Khust District Prosecutor’s Office, entered the case into the Unified Register of Pretrial Investigations under Part 1 of Article 121 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (intentional grievous bodily injury).
The penalty under the charged article provides for imprisonment for a term of 5 to 8 years. The issue of officially notifying the detainee of the charges and having the court impose a preventive measure in the form of pretrial detention without the right to bail is currently being decided.
Source: Main Directorate of the National Police in Zakarpattia Oblast.
