UA
FR
DEThe United States District Court for the Southern District of New York will hold a preliminary hearing on 14 October on the lawsuit filed by the family of Quinn Schansman, killed in the downing of Flight MH17, against Russian Sberbank and VTB Bank, Western Union and MoneyGram money transfer services.
TASS Russian state news agency reports with reference to the court.
It is noted that Schansman was one of the passengers on the Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 that had been shot down over the Donetsk region in July 2014.
The court confirmed that it had previously rejected the defendants’ objections that the jurisdiction of the District Court for the Southern District of New York allegedly did not cover the case and made a decision on the possibility of considering the case on the merits.
The Schansman family appealed to a U.S court in 2019. For two years, the court considered various objections from the defendants regarding the possibility of considering the case. Representatives of the Schansman family claim that Russian Sberbank and VTB bank, as well as Western Union and MoneyGram American money transfer services were used to finance militants in the territories of Donbas not controlled by the Government of Ukraine. According to the plaintiffs, these people are responsible for the downing of the plane.
As a reminder, the case of the downing of Flight MH17 in 2014 is being considered at the Schiphol Judicial Complex in the Netherlands. On 24 September, the 9th block of hearings ended, during which the relatives of the victims addressed the court. People shared their pain, talked about how they were hurt by disinformation and non-recognition of involvement and responsibility.
The next block of hearings is scheduled to begin on 1 November 2021. Relatives of the victims will continue to be heard. In total, 93 relatives of the victims of the downing of Flight MH17 will address the court.
Bohdan Marusyak
