Bullying in the army: the truth they were afraid to tell

For a long time, they talked quietly about bullying in the army or remained silent at all, but the war brought us back to the realities where systemic scandals in it not only did not disappear, but are manifested even more painfully. Recent stories, shocking in their brutality and cynicism, point to a problem that has been passed from one level of government to another for years and yet has now come to the surface. Instead of creating a strong team in the conditions of war, where everyone becomes a support and rear for each other, we see the devaluation of the life and health of soldiers. Terrible cases of treatment of their own soldiers destroy their psyche, internal respect and trust in the army, discouraging any desire to join its ranks. How is it that those who are supposed to support their brothers in arms become the cause of fear, humiliation and demoralization? Why are the soldiers who defend their country shoulder to shoulder now becoming victims of their commanders?
Abuse of soldiers in the 211th pontoon-bridge brigade
Journalists of “Ukrainian Pravda” (UP) made public scary facts of abuse of military personnel in the 211th pontoon-bridge brigade of the Support Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, because silence only continues the cycle of lawlessness. In the center of their investigation were cases of systemic violence, extortion of money and circular bail among the leadership of the brigade. Military personnel, who were supposed to build defensive positions and pontoon crossings, found themselves under pressure and threats from the commanders. At the same time, the name of Vladyslav Pastukh, the son of the brigade chief of staff Valery Pastukh, who abused his subordinates and demanded money from them, is most often mentioned.
As the journalists note, at the beginning of July 2024, the command of the 211th pontoon-bridge brigade of the Support Forces of the Armed Forces faced the disappearance of a soldier. He was found at home in the Ternopil region, where he was hiding in the attic in a critical condition: exhausted, scared, he refused to return to the unit, because he was sure that he would be killed there if he did not pay money to the son of the chief of staff – Vladyslav Pastukh. The soldier was the victim of systematic threats and abuse, which Shepherd Jr. allegedly practiced on subordinates, using his father’s status and connections in the brigade.
During the official investigation, two officers decided to check whether the missing soldier was hiding in his home behind the place of registration. They went to one of the villages in the Ternopil Region, where they actually found the fugitive. The soldier’s 75-year-old mother met them at the door. The woman cried and begged to help her son. She said that after returning home, he completely withdrew into himself: he did not communicate with anyone, refused food and drank vodka almost constantly.
The officers went up to the attic where the soldier was hiding. An eerie picture appeared before them: a man sitting in a corner, looking exhausted, pale and frightened. As Tymofiy Ostafychuk, a former officer of the department of psychological support for personnel, told UP, his condition was critical — he was drunk, thin to the bone and silent, hiding his face. At first he categorically refused to speak, but later burst into a scream. The soldier declared that he would not return to the unit under any circumstances, because he would be “killed” there if he did not pay the money to the son of the chief of staff.
According to Ostafiychuk, Vladyslav Pastukh demanded money from the military under the threat of physical torture or transfer to the infantry, where, according to him, they would be “thrown to the meat.” Those who did not pay were severely beaten. Soldiers described being thrown into makeshift “cages”, tied to a wooden cross and abused to force them to pay. The most eerie thing is the fact that these actions were accompanied by documentary evidence, video and photo materials provided by the victims. One of the photos shows Vladyslav Pastukh against the background of a soldier tied to a cross. However, instead of punishing the offender, Pastuh’s father, who is the chief of staff, paid compensation to the victims, and his son was quietly transferred to another unit.
As the journalists note, these terrible details became known in the spring of 2024 during an official inspection. Vladyslav Pastukh, the platoon commander of the first battalion, really organized the beating of soldiers if they did not pay the “ransom” – from 5 to 20 thousand hryvnias.
“He threatened us that his father is the chief of staff, and his godfather is a brigadier general, and if we don’t pay, we will be sent to the infantry “for meat”. – said one of the victims.
Another serviceman reported that Pastuh Jr. used physical force after drinking alcohol during the rotation. One of the testimonies says that the soldier was tied to the cross and was mocked to intimidate others. In confirmation of these words, the journalists received photos and videos in which Vladyslav Pastukh poses against the background of humiliated military personnel. At the same time, there was no punishment for the guilty. Instead of starting a criminal investigation, management transferred Vladyslav Pastukh to another unit. His father, Valery Pastukh, paid money to the victims to cover up the scandal.
During the journalistic investigation, it became known about other violations in this brigade. In the spring of 2024, the military law enforcement service discovered that Valery Pastukh, the battalion commander at the time, did not draw up reports on soldiers who consumed alcohol. This allowed violators to avoid fines and receive bonuses. The result of the inspection was a number of evidences of systemic corruption, but the responsibility for Pastukh Sr. was limited to a fine of 34 thousand hryvnias and compensation to the state of 140 thousand hryvnias for damages. Instead of being punished, he remained in his post, and his son was kept out of the investigation.
Another glaring fact was the fictitious mission of the military. Four soldiers of the brigade, who were supposed to carry out combat missions in the Kherson region, instead built a house for the brigade commander Oleg Poberezhniuk in the Khmelnytskyi region. They were included in the lists as participants in hostilities, so that they would receive awards and the status of the UBD. Currently, the investigation is ongoing, but Poberezhniuk was not only not suspended, but also received the Order of Bohdan Khmelnytsky III degree from the hands of the President of Ukraine.
At the same time, according to the military, the 211th brigade became the center of a circular guarantee. Command, relatives and close connections created a system where the guilty escaped punishment and problems were hushed up. Those who tried to investigate or cover the situation were transferred to infantry units, where the risk of death is much higher.
Journalists of “Ukrainian Pravda” found out that despite the shocking evidence of abuse of the military, no criminal proceedings were ever opened regarding the actions of Vladyslav Pastukh. Neither the prosecutor’s office nor the State Bureau of Investigation saw grounds for investigating brutal beatings, extortion of money, and abuse of soldiers. Shepherd Jr. remained unpunished. According to the results of the pre-trial investigation, on September 9, 2024, the prosecutor’s office closed the criminal proceedings, referring to the “absence of the crime”. However, it was proven that Valery Pastukh did not prosecute ten subordinates who were on duty in a state of intoxication. As a result, they illegally received bonuses in the total amount of about 140 thousand hryvnias. On September 10, 2024, the Husiatyn District Court found Valery Pastukh guilty of negligent service during martial law. The punishment turned out to be quite mild: a maximum fine of 34,000 hryvnias and restitution to the state of 140,000 hryvnias. The court even noted the mitigating circumstances — the “confession of guilt and sincere remorse” of Shepherd Sr. At the same time, the court did not establish any aggravating circumstances. Meanwhile, soldiers continue to live in fear, because they know that there may be no punishment for bullying in military units.
Journalists tried to get comments from brigade commander Oleh Poberezhnyuk and chief of staff Valery Pastukh, but the brigade commander refused to speak on the phone, and communications officer Olga Adamovych sent brief statements on behalf of Valery Pastukh. In the answer, he justifies that “the protocols were not drawn up due to the detachment of personnel at a separate location” and that award decisions were made on the basis of commanders’ reports. Regarding his son, he noted that “26-year-old Vladyslav is an adult and takes responsibility for his actions”, adding that there was never any direct reporting between them.
Against the background of the high-profile investigation by the journalists of “Ukrainian Pravda” about bullying and corruption in the 211th pontoon-bridge brigade, the situation gained even more publicity thanks to the statement of People’s Deputy Yulia Yatsyk on the air “News Live”. On a live broadcast, she confirmed the existence of shocking facts about beatings, torture and extortion of money from the military. According to Jatsyk, the fighters in the 211th brigade were beaten so brutally that it led to ruptures of internal organs, fractures of the skull, nose and other serious injuries.
“Why this story is being talked about only now – I don’t understand. These are really crimes in which people were beaten very hard,” – she emphasized.
The deputy emphasized that the investigation materials, which contain evidence of torture and brutal violence, were collected back in September 2024. All these materials were transferred to the relevant law enforcement agencies, in particular the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI). However, despite such blatant information, the public has not yet seen any significant results of the investigation of the People’s Deputies. Jatsyk’s statement only reinforced the issue of complete impunity for crimes in military units and circular bail that protects those with power and connections.
The facts voiced by journalists and the People’s Deputy clearly demonstrate that the problem is much deeper and more systemic than it seems. The torture and beating of soldiers in the rear is a shame for the Armed Forces, which cannot be silenced. This story of the 211th Brigade demonstrates how impunity breeds arbitrariness even in military units far from the front. Against the backdrop of war, military personnel remain defenseless against those who use their positions for personal enrichment and abuse.
Reaction of the command of the Armed Forces
After the appalling facts of torture, beatings and extortions of money in the 211th pontoon-bridge brigade became widespread, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Oleksandr Syrskyi reacted to the situation The General Staff reported that, by its decision, a commission of the Military Law and Order Service was sent to the brigade to conduct a full official investigation. During the inspection, the brigade commander, Colonel Oleg Poberezhnyuk, was temporarily removed from duty.
The General Staff emphasized that some of the reported incidents of violence had already been subject to verification in September 2024. According to the results of that inspection, criminal proceedings were initiated, but until now society has not seen any real punishment for the guilty. The repeated scandal forced the leadership of the Armed Forces to take up the investigation again, because the public outcry no longer allows these crimes to be silenced.
At the same time, the spokesman of the Ministry of Defense, Dmytro Lazutkin, commented on the situation with the 211th brigade, who actually admitted that the department did not have information about the abuse in the 211th brigade.
“We cannot say that this phenomenon is massive, but this phenomenon is unequivocally shameful, which contradicts the basic principles of building the modern Ukrainian army. We did not have information on these cases”Lazutkin said.
According to him, the lack of complaints to the hotline of the Ministry of Defense or to the servicemen’s rights protection department could be the reason why the ministry did not react earlier. He also emphasized that from now on, when the cases became known, a detailed investigation would be conducted.
Dmytro Lazutkin also promised that the Ministry of Defense is working on a draft law on the military ombudsman, which should protect the rights of servicemen in similar situations. However, he did not announce specific terms or details regarding the implementation of this project. That is, the attempt to introduce such a position once again emphasizes the fact that the rights of military personnel are violated on a large scale in the army.
Wide publicity of the situation in the 211th brigade forced the military leadership to act publicly. The removal of Poberezhnyuk and the referral of the commission looks like the first step towards restoring justice, but the main question remains open: will it not end with another report and formal conclusions? After all, similar incidents have been hushed up more than once, and cases have stalled at the stage of inspections. Now that the situation has reached such a scale, society and the military expect real punishment of the guilty and real changes in the system. The scandal involving torture in the rear units is a blow to the reputation of the Ukrainian army, which rests on the self-sacrifice and lives of the soldiers. Whether the Commander-in-Chief and the Ministry of Defense will be able to respond to this challenge will become clear after the results of the inspection.
Against the background of the war, when Ukrainian soldiers give their lives at the front, the situation in the 211th brigade shows how indifferent the system can be to its people. The scandal surrounding the 211th pontoon-bridge brigade has become another evidence of the deep problems affecting the Ukrainian army from the inside, and this case is probably not unique. Brutal abuse, beatings to the bone and torture of soldiers, abuse of official position, demanding money under the threat of being sent to the front as “cannon fodder” – all this sounds like a sentence not only for a specific unit, but also for the system that allows such crimes to exist. The most doubtful thing is that the leadership of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Ministry of Defense “did not know.”” about events that lasted more than one day and were known to many military personnel. Only after a high-profile journalistic investigation and public publicity was there a reaction aimed at calming public opinion. The temporary removal of the commander, inspections and promises of new defense tools look like an afterthought, not due to internal control, but due to external pressure.
The conditions of war require maximum trust in the army as an institution that is the guarantor of the state’s security. Such incidents undermine this trust not only among the military, but also among the civilian population. Violence, command impunity and circular bail create an atmosphere of fear and despair in the army. This directly affects the willingness of people to volunteer for service, which can explain the increase in violent mobilization as a forced reaction to the decrease in the number of people willing to join the ranks of the Armed Forces.
For Ukrainian society, which supports the front and its defenders every day, such stories are a shock and a challenge. Soldiers must fight an external enemy, not fear their commanders in the rear. Without a real cleansing of the army, fair punishment for the guilty and systemic control, such incidents become a poison that eats away at the army and destroys its morale. At the same time, impunity creates new crimes, and silence about them is complicity. In the conditions of war, this is not just unacceptable, but extremely dangerous for the very existence of the state.