Territorial defense fighter abducted by Russians found dead in Kherson

10.06.2022 23:22

Ukrinform

Vitalii Lapchuk, a Ukrainian paratrooper, police colonel, Candidate of Psychological Sciences, who had joined the ranks of the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces since the early days of the Russian invasion, was abducted by Russians and later found dead in the city of Kherson.

The relevant statement was made by the Media Initiative for Human Rights (MIPL), referring to Vitalii’s wife Aliona, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

“His body was found in a river not far from the river port on May 22, but relatives have been informed just now,” the report states.

In Kherson, Russians were chasing after the Territorial Defense fighters, namely Vitalii Lapchuk and his friend, Denys Myronov. Both of them were detained. Denys was taken to Crimea and died there from severe beating.

After searches at Lapchuk’s house, his wife Aliona and their son were also taken by Russians and interrogated. Aliona witnessed tortures used against her husband. She and her son managed to escape, and Vitalii was accused of crimes against the Russian military.

For more than two months, Aliona had been looking for a place, where Russians could have kept Vitalii, She hoped for him to stay alive. But, on June 9, 2022, she was told that her husband was found dead in a river with signs of torture: a broken skull and a weight on his leg.