Russian troops went on drunken killing spree in occupied Ukraine: reports

Russian authorities arrested two soldiers who had been on a drunken killing spree in the Moscow-occupied part of Kherson, according to reports. 

"They killed residents and burned their houses if they were refused alcohol," Telegram channel VChK-OGPU reported. 

Alexander Kaygorodtsev, 36, and Alexander Osipov, 34, were detained on April 24 on suspicion of murder. The pair, members of the 144th Guards Motor Rifle Division, admitted to killing at least five people and told investigators they had hidden the bodies of additional victims, including the head of the village of Abrikosovka, where the killings occurred.

The victims included a 65-year-old and a woman the duo shot in the stomach before burning her house. They proceeded to "disfigure" some victims, including breaking open their skulls. They used grenades and fire to hide the evidence of their crimes by trying to destroy the bodies and the crime scenes.  

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Their victims included other Russian servicemen, making their motives even more puzzling for investigators. They shot one victim, Lyubov Tymchak, because she told them they could not find an empty house to commandeer.

Russian Telegram channel Astra reported that no charges had been officially opened against the two soldiers, but another report claimed that the pair would face an investigation from the 126th Military Investigation Department of the Russian Investigative Committee, according to East2West.

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Kaygorodtzev was previously convicted of murder and participation in drug trafficking, serving a five-year sentence with another six-month suspended sentence. If convicted of the new murders, he will face life in prison. 

Ukrainian outlet The New Voice of Ukraine argued that killings were part of "ongoing violence and turmoil" within the Russian-occupied regions of the country. Reports have covered a number of crimes committed against the Ukrainian residents of the Russian-occupied zones, including alleged attacks on the LGBTQ+ population in the city of Kherson. 

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A report from human rights NGO watchdog Projector — in partnership with OutRight International — detailed attacks on LGBTQ+ residents of the city between March and September 2023, during which time the group claims some Russian forces deliberately targeted queer residents.

Projector claimed that many survivors of these crimes have rarely contacted law enforcement over fears that they would not receive support. 

In February, the bruised and possibly executed corpse of a Ukrainian Orthodox priest was found in the streets of Kalanchak, also in the Kherson region. The priest, Father Stepan, was found with what the outlet described as a possible bullet wound to the head. 

Russian forces had detained him two days earlier, and the local bishop claimed that the troops had tortured the priest to death, according to Forum 18, a Norwegian news agency.