The 425th separate assault regiment “Skelya” stated that they are cooperating with law enforcement and relevant authorities to establish the circumstances of the death of five servicemen who died shortly after mobilization. This was stated in the regiment’s statement published on the evening of May 19.
The command stressed that they were interested in a full, objective and impartial investigation into the causes of each death.
In March, five recently mobilized men from the Ivano-Frankivsk region died less than two weeks after being drafted. These are Vasyl Voychuk, Vasyl Tsyurka, Yaroslav Mokry, Petro Danyltsiv, and Vitaliy Karat. Their relatives claimed that the soldiers were beaten.
“About Yaroslav Mokry, the sister says in the article that he “had poor health”. His death was caused by a hidden pathology that was not detected during the VLK, namely: chronic pulmonary insufficiency, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease,” — the regiment stated.
Sister Mokry said that he had problems with his lungs even before mobilization, and before being drafted, he served in the TCK. According to her, her brother called her husband on Viber from an unknown number and during a short conversation, “as if someone was standing next to him,” asked his relatives not to worry. He died soon after.
Regarding Petro Danyltsev, “Skel” stated that the cause of his death was also “a hidden pathology that was not detected during the VLK, namely: acute heart failure, atherosclerotic cardiosclerosis.”
Vasyl Voychuk’s brother said that when he came to pick up the body, he saw traces of beating, and his brother’s skull, according to him, was “displaced from the blow from right to left.” At the same time, he did not file a statement with the law enforcement agencies demanding an investigation into the circumstances of his death.
“Information about possible injuries was checked by the investigative bodies, according to preliminary information, no injuries were found. The cause of death was determined to be a hidden pathology that was not detected during the VLK, namely: left pleural empyema, acute pulmonary heart failure,” — the regiment emphasized.
Vitaliy Karat’s relatives claimed that they did not know where he was. Later, the man got in touch and said that he had been assigned to this regiment, although, according to the family, he had not undergone VLK. His sister also said that the soldier complained of constant beatings. He died shortly after.
The “Rock” stated that during his service, Vitaliy Karat tried to leave the unit on his own. According to the regiment, he was found “high on a pine tree” during a search.
“After talking, he decided to go down, but fell from it. Later, during an X-ray, he was diagnosed with a fracture of two ribs and pneumonia, which is why he was hospitalized in a hospital in Pavlohrad. What happened to him in the medical facility is being clarified in cooperation with the relevant institution,” the regiment said.
The regiment called Karat’s cause of death “organ anemia, rib fractures, closed blunt chest trauma, injuries resulting from contact with a blunt object.”
Vasyl Tsyurka’s sister said that her brother did not get in touch, and later reported that he had been beaten. After his family learned about his service in “Skel,” they sent him his belongings and a phone. Later, the woman called her brother, but another man picked up the phone and said that Tsyurko “will be in solitary confinement for two more days.”
Two days later, according to the sister, the family learned that Vasyl had died six days ago, that is, before that conversation. The Dnipropetrovsk region police reported that the man’s death was being investigated as a murder.
“Vasyl Tsyurko died of acute cardiovascular failure, atherosclerotic heart disease. A criminal case has been opened into this death under Part 1 of Article 115 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The cause of death was stated as acute cardiovascular insufficiency, atherosclerotic heart disease,” Skela reports. The regiment added that such cases cause significant public resonance and concern among military families. They stated that the command is open to cooperation with the media, is ready to provide verified information within the framework of the law and security requirements, and also to contribute to objective coverage of the situation.
