Former head of a sturgeon processing plant seized by the Russians dies in the Kherson region

In the Kherson region, Vitaliy Plugataryov, who headed the "Askaniy" farm—an entity illegally established by the occupiers—was killed in a drone attack. 

Vladimir Saldo announced his death, according to Vgoru.

According to Saldo, the drone struck Plugataryov’s car as he was driving to a farm in the Kakhovka district on business. He died at the scene from his injuries.

As reported by the Center for Investigative Journalism, in August 2026, Plugataryov became the fourth director of the state-owned enterprise “Askaniyiske Experimental Farm” in the Kherson region, which had been seized by the Russians. 

From 2008 until the occupation, he headed the state-owned Dnipro Sturgeon Reproduction Plant named after Academician S. T. Artshchyk. In 2022, Plugataryov became the head of an occupation-era enterprise illegally established on the plant’s premises; however, in January 2025, the Russians dismissed him from this position. 

Plugataryov’s political career began even before he was elected as a deputy from the “Servant of the People” party. In 2010, he headed the district organization of the “Christian Democratic Union” party and served as a deputy on the Bilozerka District Council. In 2014 and 2016, he ran for the Verkhovna Rada as a candidate for Oleg Lyashko’s Radical Party, and in 2015, he became a member of the Bilozerka District Council representing that party.

In 2020, he was elected a member of the Bilozerka Town Council representing the “Servant of the People” party. In June 2025, the party’s regional organization decided to revoke his legislative mandate.

Анна Літман