The "starosta" of the occupiers fled from the Kinburn Spit to Kherson region

Serhiy Belyakov, the self-proclaimed "starosta" of the villages of the Kinburn Spit, fled Mykolaiv region to the resort of Lazurne in the occupied part of Kherson region. He quarreled with the Russian occupiers and lost their trust.

This was reported by the Center for Investigative Journalism.

According to the media, propaganda channels have removed stories with his participation, and pro-Russian publics now call him a "crook," "fraudster," and "huckster."

Locals say that after the shelling, his house in Pokrovka was destroyed, so he left the spit. There are almost no civilians left on the Kinburn Spit itself - only a few dozen people live in the villages of Vasylivka and Pokrovka, mostly elderly and sick, who cannot leave due to lack of transportation and documents.

The occupation authorities no longer refer to Belyakov as a "starosta" - now he is presented as a volunteer. After his escape, he stated that he was being "persecuted and destroyed reputationally." Meanwhile, Russian channels accuse him of selling land to the military and collaborating with Ukrainian intelligence.

According to locals, the Kinburn Spit is now virtually destroyed: villages are mined, and people are dying even near their own homes. Ukrainian Navy spokesman Dmytro Pletenchuk confirmed that the occupiers' actions led to the complete destruction of the territory.

Belyakov became famous back in 2024 when he recorded a video message criticizing the Russian military and collaborator Konstantin Tistol, who was in charge of the Kinburn Spit from the occupation administration. He complained about looting, violence and humiliation of the locals.

Until 2014, Belyakov lived in Mykolaiv, then moved to Kinburn, where he and his wife, Tetiana Larina, owned the Larina Dacha hotel, which often appeared in Russian media propaganda stories.

In early November, the court found guilty in absentia a collaborator from Kherson region who headed the illegal "client service" of the Russian pension fund in the occupied territory. In addition to fulfilling his official duties, he collected humanitarian aid for the Russian military. The man in question is 39-year-old Serhiy Khvostov, who was engaged in private business and retail trade before the full-scale invasion.

Анна Бальчінос