Tortured Ukrainian prisoners: Ukraine's police force identify 17 individuals with roles in 'DPR justice system'

The Ukrainian National Police shared the news.

The punitive bodies of the so-called 'DPR', which were engaged in the kidnapping and interrogation of Ukrainians, were created in 2014, reported Khrystyna Podyryako - head of the department for the investigation of crimes committed in the context of armed conflict, of the Main Investigative Department of the National Police. The group was formed on the basis of the 'DPR's Ministry of State Security' and 'Kalinin Correctional Colony No. 27'.

"I was tied to a metal pole face down, and at the same time, electric wires were put on my fingers and toes, through which, periodically, for several hours, electricity was supplied and water poured over me, and I was beaten with rubber sticks on my feet," admits one of the victims of torture.

Since the beginning of the full-scale war in Ukraine, law enforcement officers have been investigating more than 1,000 criminal proceedings for torture of civilians and prisoners of war. It has already been possible to identify 17 persons involved in crimes. The cases of the participants are planned to be considered not only in Ukrainian, but also in international courts. Criminals face up to 15 years in prison.

Law enforcement officers emphasize that Ukrainians also joined the ranks of the penal authorities. They are suspected of treason and participation in a terrorist organization.

"Illegal arrests and kidnappings, torture and detention in inhumane conditions are the features of their terrorist activities for not recognizing the so-called 'DPR' and cooperating with the Ukrainian authorities. In order to force them to confess to espionage and other fictitious 'crimes', they buried prisoners alive, simulated their execution, threatened to torture and kill close relatives, wives, and children," emphasized Dmytro Shevchuk, Deputy Head of the Department of Investigation of Crimes Committed in Conditions of Armed Conflict, Main Investigative Department of the National Police.