Company director in court over Birmingham wall collapse death

Simon Briggs and Vasyl Bychkov appeared at Birmingham Magistrates' Court

The director of a building firm has appeared in court accused of killing an employee after a wall collapsed.

Oleksander Rudyy, known as Sasha, died on 8 May 2019 on a building site he was working at in Vittoria Street, Birmingham.

His widow said his death had "left a big hole in my heart that can never be filled".

Simon Briggs, sole director of Stonehurst Estates Ltd, appeared at Birmingham Magistrates' Court.

The 60-year-old, of Danehill, West Sussex, has been charged with manslaughter.

Stonehurst Estates Ltd has also been charged with corporate manslaughter and a breach of the Health and Safety at Work Act.

Another firm with Mr Briggs as sole director, Vittoria Apartments Ltd, has been charged with the same two offences.

A second man, Vasyl Bychkov, appeared at the same hearing also accused of Mr Rudyy's manslaughter.

The 43-year-old, of Victoria Rise, Clapham, London, has also been charged under the Health and Safety at Work Act.

The accusation is that, when working as a fellow employee on site, he "failed to take reasonable care for the health and safety of others" including Mr Rudyy and another man, Yuriy Hnativ.

Neither man was asked to enter any pleas and both were given bail ahead of their next appearance at Birmingham Crown Court in September.

In her statement, issued through law firm Fieldfisher, Mr Rudyy's widow added: "There is an emptiness inside of me that will haunt me every day for the rest of my life."

His 26-year-old son Volodymyr said his father's death "just splits your life in half" as he said "everything you have imagined will never come true".