Death threats and rape: crimes by two Russian soldiers during occupation of Bucha district exposed

Investigators have identified a Russian soldier who, during the occupation of Kyiv Oblast in 2022, forced a woman and her children to leave their home while threatening to kill them. He has been served with a notice of suspicion. Another Russian soldier who raped a woman in an occupied village will be tried in absentia.

Source: Kyiv Oblast police

Details: Law enforcement officers established that a soldier from the Volki battalion of the 16th Brigade of Russia's Main Intelligence Directorate was stationed in the village of Kachaly during the occupation of the Bucha district. In March 2022, he and other soldiers carried out raids on the homes of local residents.

In one of the houses, the invader threatened to kill a woman and her underage children if they did not leave their home for the Russian forces to occupy.

At the start of the full-scale war, another Russian soldier threatened to kill a man in the temporarily occupied village of Andriivka to suppress resistance. He also raped a civilian woman, exploiting her vulnerability.

Currently, one of the soldiers has been served with a notice of suspicion, while the indictment against the other has been sent to court.

Both are charged under Article 438.1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine for war crimes involving cruel treatment of civilians. The article carries a punishment of 8 to 12 years' imprisonment.

Background: A police officer from the Russian city of Omsk was also served with a notice of suspicion for committing war crimes by the Main Directorate of Ukraine's National Police in Kherson Oblast. He headed a temporary detention facility in occupied Kherson and personally took part in the torture of civilians.

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