A Lviv border guard was sentenced to prison for a fatal drunk driving accident.

The Zhovkva District Court of Lviv Oblast issued a verdict for the border service inspector from the "Rava-Ruska" department, 37-year-old Andriy Fadyevych, for a fatal traffic accident he caused on January 1, 2017, while under the influence of alcohol.

According to case materials, the deadly accident occurred on January 1 at around 4:00 PM on the Lviv – Rava-Ruska highway. Andriy Fadyevych, driving a BMW 320i at high speed (150 km/h), collided with a SEAT Toledo traveling in the same direction. As a result of the impact, the SEAT veered off the road into a ditch and overturned. Its 39-year-old driver sustained fatal injuries.

In court, Andriy Fadyevych did not admit his guilt. He denied driving under the influence, claiming he was transporting bottles of alcohol in his vehicle which broke during the collision, resulting in the smell of alcohol inside. He also stated that he was very thirsty in the hospital and drank what he thought was water, which turned out to be alcohol.

Judge Zoryan Oprysk took into account the defendant's testimony and deemed the allegation of driving under the influence unproven.

After reviewing all the case materials, the court found the border service inspector guilty of violating traffic safety rules that resulted in the victim's death (part 2 of Article 286 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine) and sentenced him to six years in prison, along with a three-year ban on driving vehicles. The term of the sentence will be counted from the actual detention of the offender – from July 2023. Additionally, Andriy Fadyevych is to pay 1 million UAH in moral damages to the relatives of the deceased. An appeal can still be filed against the verdict.