Appeal court orders that Russian father is “free to go” |08 August 2023

Dimitry Sandul, the Russian national who was sentenced to two years and six months in prison following the death of his 17-month old son is now “free to go”.

Mr Sandul was sentenced by the Supreme Court on February 15 this year, following the death of his son Emilyan Sandul, who was  left unattended in a parked car at the ‘Goals’ gymnasium car park, Anse Royale, on January 21.

The Court of Appeal yesterday quashed the sentence, substituting it for a six-month sentence. However, since Mr Sandul has already served six months, court ordered that “he is free to go” and also ordered that he be repatriated to Russia.

Mr Sandul was appealing only against his sentence, and not against conviction.

Sandul and his wife 29-year-old Viktoria were holidaying in Seychelles along with their two other children, one aged four and the other aged six, at the time of the incident.

He pled guilty to the amended charge of wilfully neglecting, abandoning or exposing a child in a manner likely to cause unnecessary suffering, moral danger or injury to health, contrary to Section 70 (1B) of the Children Act and Section 22 (a) of the Penal Code, before the Supreme Court on February 10.

The prosecution in the initial case noted that the couple went to the gym and had left the child unattended for at least one hour, and upon returning found him unresponsive. After taking him to the Anse Royale hospital, the doctor tried to resuscitate the baby but was unsuccessful, and the child was certified dead at around 2.15pm.  

Laura Pillay