The Kyiv Court of Appeal has upheld the life sentences in the case of the murder of the Cherevan family
This was reported by the National Police of Ukraine.
On 6 April, the National Police reported that, following a ruling by the Kyiv Court of Appeal, a former serviceman and two civilians had been sentenced to life imprisonment with confiscation of property. They were found guilty of the premeditated murder of two adults and a minor, banditry, unlawful handling of weapons, unlawful seizure of a vehicle, the deliberate destruction of property by arson, and the possession of large quantities of narcotics. The court also ordered compensation to the families of the victims amounting to 30 million hryvnias for moral damages and nearly 695,000 hryvnias for property damages.
This concerns the murder of the Cherevan family, which took place on 14 May 2023 in the Chernihiv region. On that day, 30-year-old Mykola Cherevan, his 28-year-old wife Viktoria and their 4-year-old son Bohdan left Kyiv in a Mazda to view and, presumably, buy a car near Mena. According to Suspilne, Mykola was involved in buying and selling cars, and the family had also planned to visit Viktoria’s relatives after the trip. They last made contact at 14:33. That evening, their burnt-out car was found in a wooded area near the village of Sadove, and about 500 metres away, a pit was discovered containing bodies covered with earth and branches.
According to the investigation, the family were lured into a fake car sale involving a vehicle that did not actually exist. The police established that the 22-year-old organiser had visited the scene of the crime in advance, identifying where the bodies would be buried and where the victims’ car would be taken to be set alight. He enlisted two accomplices for the attack — a 27-year-old man and a 20-year-old woman; all three were residents of the Koryukivka district. As the police noted, the attackers saw that, apart from the driver, there was a woman and a small child in the car, but this did not stop them. The family were taken to a deserted spot and shot inside the car.
At the crime scene, forensic investigators recovered bullet casings, bullets, bloodstained items, and traces of footwear and tyre tracks. Over twenty bullet holes were counted in the car. After the murder, the bodies were buried in a wooded area, whilst the Mazda was dragged to the other side and set alight. According to Suspilne, around $6,000 was taken from the victim. The following day, as reported by the police, the organiser bought himself a car and paid his two accomplices 25,000 hryvnias each for their “assistance”.
The police claim that all three suspects were identified and arrested in less than 24 hours. Two were arrested in the Chernihiv region, and the organiser in the Zhytomyr region, where he had fled immediately after the crime. According to the National Police, he was found in possession of grenades and explosives at the time of his arrest. During searches, law enforcement officers seized, among other things, a Kalashnikov assault rifle, which, according to the investigation, was used to shoot the family, as well as bloodstained clothing and other material evidence.
Further details of the case emerged during the court proceedings. Suspilne Chernihiv reported the names of the accused: Oleksandr Chernichenko, Alona Yarmola and Sviatoslav Goncharov. It was Goncharov whom the publication identified as the organiser of the crime and the person whom the court of first instance found to be the one who shot the family. Suspilne’s reports also stated that during the appeal, Goncharov insisted on the version involving a “fourth person” who allegedly does not feature in the case files, whilst the other two requested that the verdict be overturned or that part of the evidence be re-examined. Prosecutor Ivan Hrytsenko responded by stating that the actions of all three were clear and coordinated, and that the group itself had taken measures to conceal their activities, including changing the number plates on their car and carrying a shovel and automatic weapons.
Suspilne also drew attention to another detail: whilst in Kyiv remand centre, Sviatoslav Goncharov, according to journalists and volunteers, hosted live streams on TikTok under the pseudonym “Knyaz”. The publication reported that, following enquiries to the remand centre and the Department for the Execution of Criminal Sentences, his phone and even his Wi-Fi router were confiscated; however, the story of the live streams only came to light during the appeal proceedings. Goncharov himself did not directly admit this in court and attempted to deny any involvement in the broadcasts.
The first verdict in this case was handed down at the end of 2024. Suspilne reported that as early as 30 December 2024, the three defendants were sentenced to life imprisonment. By 13 March 2026, journalists reported that the Kyiv Court of Appeal had dismissed the appeals. Judge Viktoria Yakovleva stated at the time that the ruling came into force immediately upon pronouncement and could be appealed directly to the Supreme Court within three months. Following the appeal ruling, the relatives of the deceased said that “it won’t make things any easier”, but that punishment must be meted out.
As a reminder, police in the Khmelnytskyi region detained a group of individuals suspected of extorting money and attempting to organise a scheme to obtain disability status to avoid military service. The court imposed a preventive measure of detention on the suspects.
