The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the Prosecutor’s Office have exposed two Russian military personnel who were directly involved in notorious and brutal war crimes in the Donetsk region
As part of a large-scale investigative operation, Ukrainian law enforcement authorities collected evidence against two more suspects from the aggressor country, known for their exceptionally cruel and unambiguous crimes against Ukrainian prisoners of war. Information was provided by representatives of the Donetsk Regional Prosecutor’s Office and the Security Service of Ukraine, who declassified details of the investigation and offered initial official comments regarding the collected evidence. According to the investigation, the offenders are known commanders of occupational military units with call signs "Yustas" and "Sber," who participated in the assault on Staromayorsk in 2024. It was they who gave direct orders to their subordinates to carry out especially brutal repressions against Ukrainian prisoners of war. Based on information announced by the investigation and confirmed by military counterintelligence materials, their orders included incredibly harsh and demonstrative actions. For example, in June of last year, the commanders ordered their subordinates to execute a captured Ukrainian and then, with shocking cynicism, decapitate him and display his head on a metal stake near a damaged armored vehicle. These crimes have garnered significant attention and shock for their brutality, as the directives were clear and merciless. According to law enforcement data, starting in 2024, the commanders instructed their units not just to demonstrate military "rigor," but to resort to savage repressions: "beheading" prisoners, displaying their heads in prominent places, and robbing victims—stealing money, valuables, and ripping off badges from clothing. Such actions constitute a clear violation of international humanitarian conventions, notably the Geneva Conventions and the Hague Convention IV, which regulate the rights and duties of parties in armed conflicts. It is noteworthy that the suspects—Dmytro Chihabakh ("Sber") and Shota Karapetyan ("Yustas")—have been formally charged in absentia under Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine — "violations of the laws and customs of war." The investigation is ongoing, and active measures are underway to apprehend them swiftly and bring them to justice. Law enforcement officials note that every day, a team of experts is working behind the scenes to gather additional evidence and investigate potential involvement of others in a broader circle of crimes connected to this high-profile case. Pavlo Uhrovezkyi, head of the Donetsk Regional Prosecutor’s Office, emphasized the importance of this process in his statement: "We continue to document all abuses and violations committed by our enemies. Their crimes are gross violations of international humanitarian law. The world needs to see who our enemy is and the extent of the cruelty they are capable of. These are not just war crimes, but testimonies to the cynicism and madness prevalent among the armed formations of the aggressor country." Your expectations for justice are, undoubtedly, gradually being realized, and Ukrainian law enforcement will continue to exert every effort to hold the perpetrators accountable. They stress that every crime committed against Ukrainian military personnel and civilians will receive its deserved punishment under current legislation. This is a sign that Ukraine will not remain indifferent and will not allow the most heinous crimes committed during this war to go unpunished. The world must see the true cost of such brutality and be assured that no war crime will remain unpunished.