Participant of the Horrific Car Accident Zaitseva: When She Can Drive Again and How She Pays 400 Hryvnias to the Mother of the Deceased

In a year, four months, and a few days, the 10-year prison term for the participant in the most high-profile car accident in independent Ukraine will expire for Kharkiv resident Olena Zaitseva. As reported, on October 18, 2017, at a busy intersection in downtown Kharkiv, a Lexus RX 350, driven by 20-year-old student Olena Zaitseva, collided at high speed with a Volkswagen Touareg driven by another individual, Hennadiy Dronov. The impact caused the Lexus to flip several times and crash into a crowd of pedestrians standing on the sidewalk.

For some time, Olena Zaitseva served her sentence at the Pokrov Correctional Facility No. 79 in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, and later she was transferred to one of the correctional institutions in Sumy Oblast.

According to sources from TSN.ua in the penitentiary system, not long ago, Olena Zaitseva applied for parole (convicts have this right if they have served a significant portion of their sentence and have good behavior), but her request was denied. In other words, according to our sources, there is a likelihood that Zaitseva will serve her full term of 10 years and may be released on October 18, 2027.

"She applied for parole, having good behavior. However, this request was not granted. Zaitseva participated in 'promka' (an industrial zone within the correctional facility), worked, and had decent behavior. The women there engage in production, including making clothing covers," says our source.

In verifying the accuracy of this information, TSN.ua reached out for a comment from the lawyer who recently represented Zaitseva in court. However, the defense attorney stated that she is bound by attorney-client privilege and left the questions unanswered.

As TSN.ua found out, some time ago, the institution to which Zaitseva was transferred was visited by specialists from the Office of the Ombudsman for Human Rights in Sumy Oblast for a monitoring visit.

"My colleagues were at this institution for a monitoring visit. I can say that conditions there are improving. I previously worked in the prosecutor's office and had been there for work-related matters; a certain period has passed, and I see the changes happening there. Undoubtedly, there are shortcomings, but overall, the conditions are normal. By the way, many women there are convicted for traffic accidents—beautiful, intelligent girls with education, but unfortunately, they committed crimes and are serving long sentences. Up to 10 years. It seems they were sewing hotel slippers, beds for cats and dogs. When we conduct such visits, we have specialists with us who check labor agreements and verify payment facts. Most convicts express a desire to work; forced labor is prohibited," said Tetiana Myronenko, a representative of the Ombudsman for Human Rights in Sumy Oblast.

Zaitseva May Be Prohibited from Driving Even a Scooter After the Accident

Additionally, as is known, the verdict from the Kyiv District Court of Kharkiv states that Zaitseva is sentenced not only to 10 years in prison but also deprived of the right to drive vehicles for a period of 3 years.

As explained in a comment for TSN.ua by lawyer Larysa Matvieieva, who represented the interests of the victims in this case, the term is added to the main punishment (Part 3 of Article 55 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

"That is, plus 3 years after serving the sentence (in other words, for three years after release, a prohibition on driving may apply—Editor)," says Larysa Matvieieva. She clarifies that the term of serving the sentence is counted from the day of the actual arrest of the person.

Meanwhile, in the National Police Patrol Department, we were informed that it is not uncommon for police to find individuals who have been deprived of the right to drive by the court but violate this prohibition.

"The prohibition on driving starts from the first day after the person is released. Theoretically, a person can apply for a reduction of this term, but in practice, this usually does not happen. A person who has been deprived of the right to drive by the court must pass an exam," says former head of the State Penitentiary Service of Ukraine and now lawyer Serhiy Starenkyi.

Considering that recently, for example, the Khmelnytskyi Court of Appeal recognized electric scooters as vehicles, the prohibition on driving may also apply to those who have such a verdict and intend to move using scooters.

Also, as an expert in the field of the penal system, Serhiy Starenkyi adds: "A person is released on the day when the term ends. The convict gathers their belongings and returns what belongs to the colony, such as bedding. If the person has earned money, it is given to them. If the person has no money and needs to travel to another settlement, the institution can provide money for a ticket after a corresponding request. As a rule, a person is released in the first half of the day."

The mother of a man who was among those killed in that accident, Svitlana Vinichenko, commented to TSN.ua that in previous years she received meager sums from Zaitseva as part of the huge monetary compensation awarded by the court. In previous years, these amounts, which she considers humiliating, ranged from 30-40 hryvnias to 995 hryvnias.

"For the last two weeks, I was preparing to contact a lawyer to find out if Zaitseva had been released. But yesterday (June 2), I received a little over 400 hryvnias from Nikopol (Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, where Zaitseva previously served her sentence—Editor). I was surprised why the funds came from there. Maybe she has already been released?" says Svitlana Vinichenko.

She added: "There wasn’t even a lousy text message (for all these years). Nothing. Today, the children had a wedding, and she made a gift yesterday…"