11 February 2025
(Photo: Facebook by Dmytro Marchenko)
Dmytro Marchenko, a major general with the call sign "Marcello" who was recognized as a hero of the defense of Mykolaiv, went through a living hell in a Ukrainian detention center after being suspected in a case of poor-quality body armor.
The full interview with General Dmytro Marchenko was published by Ukrayinska Pravda.
Marchenko spoke about the pressure and psychological torture he was subjected to during the investigation.
"I was taken without lawyers, intimidated, told that if I signed an agreement, I would be home tomorrow," the general said. This moral pressure was only the beginning. During interrogations, the investigators repeatedly threatened him: "We will put your face on the floor," Marchenko said.
In addition to psychological violence, he was forced to live in terrible conditions in the detention center.
"I went for walks together with criminal authorities, and in the cells there was everything from cut to beaten people. I stood in a narrow corridor on the "boxes" where there was no place to sit down, everything was dirty, and there was spit on the floor," the general recalls.
He was subjected to physical and psychological abuse that had nothing to do with human rights.
One of the most painful forms of torture was attempts to force him to confess to crimes he did not commit.
"They tried to make me admit that I took bribes, but I had no proof. They said it wouldn't work, because I already had an order against me, and I would be in jail until I confessed," Marchenko says.
Instead of receiving normal legal assistance, he was placed in an atmosphere where all the actions of law enforcement officers were aimed at breaking him morally and physically. General Marchenko is convinced that all these actions were part of a political game, where they tried to "break" him and use him for manipulation.
The general is convinced that such an attitude of law enforcement agencies to his case or the case of General Galushkin demoralizes the military 100%, gives uncertainty to all levels of command - from platoon commander to direction commander.
Earlier, Intent wrote that Major General Dmytro Marchenko is leaving the Armed Forces and has launched the Dmytro Marchenko Foundation.
Андрій Колісніченко