Ukrainian court sends ambulance driver into custody for 60 days over riot in Borshchahivka
A Kyiv court ordered VIKTOR Yena, an ambulance driver who brought Valentyna Moloda to a house in Petro-pavlivska Borshchahivka, to be held in custody for 60 days without the option of bail. The measure runs until 3 January 2027. Moloda and Tetyana Kiriieva were already placed under arrest for two months over the 2 November clashes near a National Guard temporary deployment point.
Najważniejsze
- On 5 November, the Solomianskyi District Court in Kyiv ordered VIKTOR Yena held for 60 days without the option of bail.
- The custody order for Yena runs until 3 January 2027; he will be held at the Kyiv Danylo Halytskyi Detention Facility.
- On 4 November, the same court sent Valentyna Moloda and Tetyana Kiriieva into custody for two months without bail.
- On 2 November, clashes erupted near a house on Soniachna Street in Petro-pavlivska Borshchahivka after unverified social media posts about roughly 40 people being held in a basement.
- Claims of hostages, torture and a death were not confirmed, the Kyiv regional police said.
- The three suspects are accused of obstructing the lawful activities of the Armed Forces and other military formations, disclosing troop locations and organising mass unrest.
- Prosecutors said Yena and Moloda prepared medical clothing and an ambulance-style vehicle, while Yena says he was only a witness and did not know about the military site.
Dlaczego to ważne
The custody decision extends a criminal case over the disclosure of military locations and mass unrest at a National Guard deployment point. It also highlights the risks created by unverified social media claims during mobilisation, when false reports of detention and torture can quickly mobilise a crowd against military sites.
Co się stało
On the morning of 2 November, Valentyna Moloda and VIKTOR Yena arrived at a house on Soniachna Street in Petro-pavlivska Borshchahivka near Kyiv in an ambulance-style vehicle. Moloda wore medical clothing and Yena presented himself as the driver. According to investigators, they had prepared the clothing and vehicle beforehand and had been reconnoitring the site for at least three days. The National Guard said the building was a temporary deployment point for a unit of the 14th Assault Regiment under the 1st Corps of the National Guard “Azov”, where mobilised men had their documents processed and underwent checks before being sent to training centres.
Social media posts claiming that about 40 people were being held in the basement, tortured and that one person had died circulated before the visit. The Kyiv regional police said reports of hostages and a death were false, and the 1st Corps “Azov” rejected the torture claims. Around 100 people gathered, and clashes followed. The crowd damaged the fence, gates and windows, damaged a National Guard bus and police cars, threw stones, smoke bombs and fireworks, and tried to overturn the bus. Law enforcement used tear gas. Four soldiers who had left their unit without authorisation were hospitalised at the National Guard medical centre, while 18 military personnel remained in the building. The incident was investigated by the National Guard, the State Bureau of Investigation, the Office of the Military Ombudsman and the Security Service of Ukraine.
According to investigators, Moloda, posing as an ambulance worker, recorded a video claiming that military personnel were in the house and were denied access, and called on people to come to the building. Prosecutors said she and Kiriieva had agreed no later than 30 October to obstruct the unit's activity and help soldiers leave their service, and that Moloda offered people an “emergency evacuation” by ambulance from mobilisation and military units for 107,000 hryvnias. On 4 November, Moloda and Kiriieva were placed under custody for two months without bail, and on 5 November Yena was sent to custody for 60 days without bail.
Jak piszą o tym źródła ukraińskie
Ukrainian reporting concentrates on the custody decisions for Yena, Moloda and Kiriieva and on their statements in court. It also details investigators' claims about the prior arrangement, the preparation of medical equipment, the reconnaissance of the site, a Telegram group and the spread of information about military personnel. Particular attention is paid to checks of Yena's medical qualifications, the companies and ambulance presented as operational, and how the National Guard deployment point actually functioned.
W czym relacje się różnią
Yena denies involvement in organising the riots, says he was only a witness and did not know about the military site. Prosecutors, by contrast, treat him as Moloda's accomplice, alleging he took part in reconnoitring the site and helped prepare the medical clothing and vehicle. Moloda also denies gathering people or inciting the crowd and says she helped four injured men, while investigators and prosecutors say she called people to the building and had agreed with Kiriieva to carry out the offence.
Kontekst
The building on Soniachna Street was used by the National Guard as a temporary deployment point through which mobilised men were sent to training centres. On 2 November, social media posts about the alleged detention of about 40 people in the basement, torture and a death circulated; these claims were not confirmed. Around 100 people gathered, and the crowd damaged the fence, gates, windows, a National Guard bus and police cars, while four soldiers were hospitalised. Moloda presented herself as a medical worker and Yena as an ambulance driver. The company “Med-Pristi”, which Moloda claimed to own, ceased operations in 2023, and the ambulance that arrived at the house had been sold in 2024.