Detonation at Vyshneve ammunition depot: defence company executives detained
The chief executive and deputy chief executive of a defence company have been detained in connection with the detonation of ammunition at a depot in Vyshneve, Kyiv Oblast.
Source: Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko; Security Service of Ukraine (SSU); a law enforcement source familiar with the matter speaking to Ukrainska Pravda
Quote from Kravchenko: "Seven people killed. Twenty-nine injured. Over 600 evacuated. Thirteen hectares of residential development in ruins.
These are not only the consequences of yet another Russian missile strike. The investigation has found that the scale of the tragedy was increased by the official negligence of specific individuals in the rear."
Details: The prosecutor general recalled that, on the night of 5-6 July, Russian forces launched a missile strike on Kyiv Oblast. A 9M723 ballistic missile from an Iskander missile system struck a warehouse belonging to the company in Vyshneve. The impact triggered a massive secondary detonation of ammunition that continued for hours.
The investigation found that a large quantity of ammunition had been stored in facilities that categorically failed to meet safety requirements and lacked the necessary permits. The warehouse was not intended for storing ammunition, especially not on a long-term basis.
Kravchenko said the placement of such facilities near residential areas is explicitly prohibited by Ukrainian law, government regulations and decisions of the Staff of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief. Those requirements were ignored. The nearest buildings were about 24 metres from the company's perimeter fence, while one house stood less than 18 metres away.
Kravchenko reported that the Russian missile was the initial cause, but the scale of the subsequent detonation and its consequences was determined by the disregard for basic ammunition storage rules and public safety.
The officials responsible for those decisions could not have been unaware of the risks.
On 16 July, the chief executive of the defence company and his deputy were detained under Article 615 of Ukraine's Criminal Procedure Code. They were notified that they are suspected of official negligence resulting in grave consequences and loss of life (Article 367.2 and Article 367.3 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). Prosecutors also filed motions seeking pre-trial detention without the possibility of bail. Both officials were dismissed from their posts.
Ukrainska Pravda has learned that the detainees are Mykola Andriiash, Chief Executive of a company within the Ukroboronprom (Ukrainian Defense Industry) structure, and his deputy, Ruslan Kuchynskyi.
Background:
- On the night of 5-6 July, Russia launched a large-scale combined strike on Ukraine using attack drones as well as air-, land- and sea-launched missiles of various types. Ukrainian air defences downed 363 out of 419 aerial assets, but 29 ballistic missiles and 18 attack drones struck 34 locations.
- In Kyiv Oblast, nine people were killed and 58 injured as a result of Russia's attack. Nearly 500 residents were evacuated from Vyshneve because of the risk of a secondary explosion.
- Ukraine's General Staff stated that the facility in Vyshneve where secondary explosions occurred on 6 July does not fall under the management of or report to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
- President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that a criminal case has been opened following the explosion at an ammunition depot belonging to an Ukroboronprom company in Vyshneve, and dismissals will follow.
Subscribe on Patreon to back our journalism long-term.