Murder of activist Demyan Hanul: attacker gets life sentence

The Prymorsky District Court of Odessa found serviceman Serhiy Shalayev guilty of the murder of well-known Odesa activist Demyan Hanul and sentenced him to life imprisonment with confiscation of property.

This was reported by the Prosecutor Generalʼs Office.

Shalaev was also stripped of his military rank of "senior lieutenant".

Prosecutors proved that in late 2024, the supervisor promised the serviceman a job in a law enforcement agency via messenger if he completed a “test task”, killing a stranger.

The serviceman agreed, voluntarily left the military unit, and arrived in Odesa, where he rented apartments, illegally purchased weapons and ammunition, and monitored the activist for a long time.

After the murder, the convict contacted the supervisor, but the supervisor stated that the man had killed "the wrong person" and ordered him to hide in a rented apartment, buy a new mobile phone, and await further instructions.

In an attempt to conceal his connection with the customer, the serviceman reset his phone to factory settings. Despite this, law enforcement officers quickly located him and detained him in one of his rented apartments that same day.

The investigation into the customer, who acted in the interests of the Russian special services, is ongoing in separate criminal proceedings.

What is known about Demyan Hanul?

According to the BBC, Hanul has been known since 2013-2014, when he was a participant in the Revolution of Dignity as part of the "Right Sector", and in Odessa he headed the power bloc of the local branch of the radical right party.

He was also a participant in the May 2, 2014, confrontation on Kulikovo Field, where almost 50 people died in the House of Trade Unions as a result of clashes between pro-Russian and pro-Ukrainian activists.

Later, he created the public organization "Street Front" and, together with like-minded people, fought against illegal construction. Protests often ended in clashes. In 2017, he was brought to justice together with activists Serhiy Sternenko and Ihor Bey.

Hanul has repeatedly participated in protests outside the Russian consulate in Odessa. In November 2021, together with like-minded people, he brought a coffin there with the inscriptions "Cargo 200" and "Russians are going home".

In early 2022, when a concert by Russian rapper Basta was to take place in Odesa, Hanul managed to have it canceled.

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