Prosecutor's Office launches investigation into alleged shooting of nine Ukrainian prisoners of war

The Office of the Prosecutor General has opened a criminal investigation into the alleged shooting of nine Ukrainian prisoners of war in the Kursk region.

This was announced by Prosecutor General of Ukraine Andriy Kostin on his Facebook page.

The killing of prisoners of war is a gross violation of the Geneva Conventions and an international crime. An investigation has been launched into the violation of the laws and customs of war combined with premeditated murder.

We are doing everything to identify and punish all perpetrators of crimes committed by the aggressor country against Ukraine and Ukrainians, the statement said.

Earlier, Intent wrote that Andriy Kostin noted that the situation with the escape of MP Artem Dmytruk revealed a serious problem - the State Border Guard Service lacks resources to fully control the border. As a significant number of border guards are fighting in the Defense Forces, the service needs additional support in the form of technical equipment and physical protection of the border between checkpoints.

Kostin emphasized that this requires money and time, and it is important to focus on the most risky areas. He named Odesa region as one of these "risky" regions, where in the first half of 2024 six indictments were sent to court against criminal groups that organized illegal border crossings, which is the highest figure in Ukraine.

On July 1, Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin signed an order to dismiss Deputy Prosecutor General Dmytro Verbytskyi from his administrative position at his own request.

On June 19, Kostin announced an internal investigation into Verbytskyi. He added that the National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption (NAPC) is conducting an investigation into the lifestyle of his deputy.

The National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) has also initiated its own investigation and opened criminal proceedings under Article 368-5 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (illicit enrichment).

Prosecutor General of Ukraine Andriy Kostinappointed Dmytro Verbytskyi as his deputy in September, after having served as deputy head of the Odesa Regional Prosecutor's Office from October 2020 to September 2022.

Ігор Льов