Jury finds Pidgorodetskiy guilty of assaulting officer

Editor's note: The Advocate covered the trial and will have more coverage next week. 

From Commonwealth Attorney Ashton Mckenzie's office: 
On February 11, 2026, Nikolay Pidgorodetskiy, 54, of Mt. Sterling was found guilty by a Montgomery County Jury of the following:

Assault 3rd Degree - Police Officer

The jury heard testimony from Officer Tristan Powell with the Mt Sterling Police Department detailing the assault he experienced at the hands of Mr. Pidgorodetskiy. In addition, they heard testimony from three eye witnesses who observed the assault of Officer Powell and testimony from Chief Aaron Noel who conducted the investigation.

The Commonwealth Attorneys's Office wants to thank the members of the Montgomery County Jury for their efforts and hard work toward a verdict. We are thankful for the message it sends to the community that we support our law enforcement officers.

My office remains committed to zero tolerance for Defendant's that attack first responders.