Ukraine holds first in-person trial of Russian soldier charged with rape

For the first time, a Russian serviceman is standing trial in person in Ukraine on charges of raping a Ukrainian woman while she was living under Russian occupation. The accused, Sergei Karpilovich, denies the allegations and claims he "fell in love" with the woman.

Source: Slidstvo.Info

Details: Russian forces began attempting to seize the village of Zolotyi Kolodiaz, near Dobropillia in Donetsk Oblast, in August 2025. One of the troops was Karpilovich, 51, from Russia's Sverdlovsk Oblast.

Before joining the Russian military, Karpilovich had spent around 30 years in prison for theft-related offences. He was released after signing a contract to serve in Russia's Armed Forces and was assigned to the 114th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade.

Karpilovich was captured by Ukrainian forces in December 2025. He is the first Russian serviceman in Ukraine to be formally charged in person with the rape of a civilian.

The prosecution states that he repeatedly raped the Ukrainian woman over a two-month period while she was sheltering in the basement of a house, sometimes assaulting her several times in one night. After Zolotyi Kolodiaz was liberated, the survivor reported the abuse to Ukrainian investigators.

Speaking to journalists, Karpilovich denied committing any crime. He said he and other Russian soldiers had entered the basement while looking for shelter. There they found the woman and a man who was later killed in an attack. Karpilovich said he stayed in the basement for the next two months.

"I was lying there, and the woman looked after me. She changed my bandages and treated my wounds. There was nobody else there. Her children live in Mariupol. We had a relationship. She's a good person," Karpilovich said, adding that he had even given her roses on her birthday.

Asked what he liked about the woman, he replied: "Her... kindness, her soul, her humanity. The way she treated me. She didn't abandon me or leave me. She's a good person."

Ukrainian investigators say Karpilovich subjected the woman to sustained psychological coercion in order to force her into sexual acts. They say he told her about his criminal past and intimidated her by claiming he had been ordered to leave no civilians alive.

Karpilovich has been charged with ill-treatment of a civilian as a war crime under Article 438.1 of Ukraine's Criminal Code. The case is now before a Ukrainian court, and if convicted, he faces up to 12 years' imprisonment.

Karpilovich told the journalists that he wants to see the woman again and does not believe she will testify against him in court.

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