The first Russian soldier to stand trial for war crimes in Ukraine has pleaded guilty to killing an unarmed civilian

A district court in Kyiv convened on Wednesday to begin its first war crimes trial against a Russian soldier who took part in the February 24 invasion of Moscow, a case of great symbolic value for Ukraine.

Adim Shishimarin, a 21-year-old Russian tank commander being held in Ukraine, is accused of murdering a 62-year-old civilian in the northeastern Ukrainian village of Chupakhivka on February 28. He told the court that he pleaded guilty.

If convicted, Shishimarin faces life imprisonment.

The Kiev government has accused Russia of atrocities and brutality against civilians during the invasion and said it had identified more than 10,000 possible war crimes.

Russia has denied attacking civilians or being involved in war crimes and has accused Kyiv of staging them to slander its armed forces.

Ukrainian prosecutors said the soldier and four other Russian soldiers shot and stole a private car to escape after their column was attacked by Ukrainian forces.

The Russian soldiers drove to the village of Chupakhivka, where they saw an unarmed resident riding a bicycle and talking on his phone, they said.

They said Shishimarin was ordered by another soldier to kill the civilian to prevent him from reporting on the Russian presence and fired several shots at the civilian’s head with an assault rifle through the car’s open window . The civilian died on the spot.