Ukraine has returned the bodies of at least 25 soldiers who died in Russian captivity since 2022: Prosecutor General’s Office
Since 2022, during repatriations, Ukraine has returned the bodies of at least 25 defenders who died in Russian captivity. According to the results of forensic examinations, the causes of death were the use of electric current, multiple fractures, hemorrhages, as well as critical exhaustion of the body due to hunger. About this it is said in the response of the Office of the Prosecutor General.
The institution noted that expert conclusions give grounds to believe that these 25 servicemen could have been ill-treated. At the same time, it is difficult to get a complete picture of the reasons and circumstances of their death due to putrefactive changes in the bodies.
“We can state that among the causes of death of Ukrainian prisoners of war are closed blunt injuries of the body with multiple rib fractures, damage to the lungs and pleural layers; fatal wounds on the head; hemorrhages in the soft tissues of the head; fatal wounds and bruises on the face; hemorrhages in the soft tissues of the left thigh and left lower leg; emaciation in the forehead area in the center; traces of the use of electric current, cachexia.” — noted in the Prosecutor General’s Office.
Artur Dobroserdov, Commissioner for Missing Persons under Special Circumstances, said that among the defenders who died in captivity, a significant part had signs of general exhaustion. Since the beginning of the full-scale war, more than 16,000 bodies of fallen defenders have already been returned to the territory controlled by Ukraine as part of repatriations.
We will remind, on October 10, 2024, the death of journalist Victoria Roshchyna in Russian captivity was officially confirmed. Her body was returned to Ukraine at the end of February. Due to the condition of the body, it was not possible to determine the exact cause of death at this time. At the same time, experts recorded numerous signs of torture and ill-treatment: wounds, hemorrhages in various areas, a broken rib and probable traces of electric current were found on the body.
