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Driver Arrested for July 4 Crash Killing 12 People

7/6/2026

Summary

Police Arrest Driver

Police arrested a 45-year-old Nissan Murano driver for the July 4 crash that killed 12.
The crash on Odesa-Melitopol-Novoazovsk (M-14) highway between Krasne and Nechayane involved a minibus, a Volvo truck and Nissan entering the opposite lane, killing 12 and injuring six, including a 15-year-old.
Mykolaiv regional head Vitaliy Kim declared July 5 a Day of Mourning with half-mast flags and cancelled events while President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed condolences as investigation continued.

Summary

Police Seek Witnesses

Death toll raised to ten after later victim died from injuries.
A State Emergency Service psychologist was dispatched to support survivors and families.
Police asked witnesses to call (050) 013-01-48 or 102 with information.
The crash created a major jam on the M-14 Odesa-Melitopol-Novoazovsk highway.
Poor road conditions caused 23 Odesa-region accidents in 2025, the fifth highest in Ukraine.

Summary

Prosecutor Investigates

Prosecutor Ihor Domushchoy heads the procedural supervision team investigating the July 4 M-14 crash.
A 45-year-old driver from another region was detained under Article 208 of Ukraine’s Criminal Procedure Code and charged under Part 3 of Article 286, which allows up to 10 years imprisonment and a three-year driving ban.
The prosecutor’s office will petition for preventive detention as the case moves toward trial, where victims included Mykolaivelektrotrans municipal workers and their families.

History

Historical Context

The July 2024 M-14 collision revives the deadly 2014 crash that spurred President Petro Poroshenko’s first road-safety decree, installing speed cameras that cut recorded violations by 18 % in two years. Occurring amid the Donbas war that began in April 2014 and the ongoing separatist conflict, the repeat underscores gaps in reform enforcement, prompting Governor Vitaliy Kim’s mourning and the detention of activist Ihor Domushchoy.

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Police Arrest Driver

Police arrested a 45-year-old Nissan Murano driver for the July 4 crash that killed 12.
The crash on Odesa-Melitopol-Novoazovsk (M-14) highway between Krasne and Nechayane involved a minibus, a Volvo truck and Nissan entering the opposite lane, killing 12 and injuring six, including a 15-year-old.
Mykolaiv regional head Vitaliy Kim declared July 5 a Day of Mourning with half-mast flags and cancelled events while President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed condolences as investigation continued.

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