SUBJECT OF PROOF IN CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS INITIATED ON THE BASIS OF TERRORIST ACTS

Abstract

The article systematizes the circumstances that constitute the subject of evidence in criminal proceedings opened on the grounds of terrorist acts. It is argued that during the detection, documentation, disclosure and investigation of crimes of this type, a number of problems arise related to their adequate criminal-legal characteristics, the isolation of the features of each crime, the analysis of the features of the manifestation of their multiplicity, including ideal and real sets of crimes of various types, the establishment of specific forms of complicity of the subjects involved in them. The results of a selective content analysis of court verdicts issued under Article 258 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine are presented, and the sources of evidence in criminal proceedings opened on the grounds of this article of the law on criminal liability, submitted by the parties to the criminal proceedings, interpreted by the courts during the trial are systematized. It is noted that the peculiarity of the general subject of evidence in criminal proceedings on crimes provided for in Art. 258 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine is the need to establish the facts of a person committing terrorist acts, financing terrorism, collaborative activities, which, in turn, forms a set of criminal offenses and receives an additional legal assessment under the relevant articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The results of a selective content analysis of sentences are presented, which indicates that a terrorist act (Article 258 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine) is qualified by a set of criminal offenses, in particular, for 2024, under Part 3 of Article 258 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, three persons were sentenced for a set of crimes, under Part 1 of Article 258-3 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – to ten persons; for comparison, for 2023, under Part 2 of Article 258 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, one person was sentenced for a set of crimes, and under Article 258-3 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – to 20 persons. At the same time, the following are incriminated: Part 3 of Article 246 “Unlawful deprivation of liberty or kidnapping of a person”; Part 1 of Article 263 “Illegal acquisition, carrying and storage of explosives, explosive devices and ammunition without a permit provided for by law”; Part 2 of Article 263-1 “Illegal manufacture, processing or repair of firearms or falsification, illegal removal or change of their marking, or illegal manufacture of ammunition, explosives or explosive devices”.