Russians held abducted civilian in basement for 36 days in Kharkiv Oblast, Ukrainian forces free him
Russian troops abducted a civilian man in Kharkiv Oblast during fighting in spring 2026 and held him in a basement for 36 days before Ukrainian forces freed him and captured the occupiers, according to regional prosecutors and the Security Service of Ukraine.
Investigators said Russian troops entered the village of Vovchanski Khutory in the Chuhuyiv district in late March 2026, took over a private house and began living there.
In early April, a 60-year-old local resident came to the yard looking for food for his elderly mother, who was seriously ill and bedridden. Russian troops detained him and threatened to shoot him if he tried to escape, the investigation said.
The man was kept in a basement, where he was left for long periods without food, water, sanitary conditions, or fresh air. He survived in those conditions for 36 days.
“For his family, these events ended in tragedy: his elderly mother, never seeing her son return with food, died,” prosecutors said.
On May 11, 2026, Ukrainian forces freed the man during a counteroffensive and captured two Russian soldiers. They were identified as servicemen of the 128th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 44th Army Corps of Russia’s Leningrad Military District — Denis Agapov, call sign Nizhniy, and Roman Sokov, call sign Zefir.
The two suspects are in custody. Investigators have charged Agapov and Sokov under Part 1 of Article 438 of Ukraine’s Criminal Code — violation of the laws and customs of war. They face up to 12 years in prison.