The Security Service of Ukraine has documented war crimes committed by Aleksei Zakharov, one of the heads of Pretrial Detention Centre No. 2 in Vyazma, Smolensk region, russia, and Igor Shtapurenko, the head of the facility’s security unit.

The investigation established that these persons were involved in the mass torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war who were illegally detained in this facility in the aggressor state.

According to the investigation, between 2022 and 2024, Zakharov and Shtapurenko personally participated in regularly beating imprisoned soldiers with PR-73 rubber batons.

The ruscists also tortured the victims with stun guns and denied them medical care in overcrowded cells in the pretrial detention centre.

These actions grossly violate the provisions of Articles 4, 13, 14 and 15 of the 12 August 1949 Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War, which prohibit any unlawful act or omission by the detaining power that poses a serious threat to the health of a prisoner under its custody.

Based on the evidence, SSU investigators notified Zakharov and Shtapurenko in absentia of their status as suspects under Article 438.1 of the CCU (war crimes).

Efforts to bring them to justice for torturing Ukrainian prisoners are underway.

The investigation was conducted under the procedural supervision of the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine.