Batura Vitaliy — Synelnykove district / Skelia, 26-28.02.2026
Chronology
- 26.02.2026 - according to his sister Olena Batura, after police were called, Vitaliy was handed over to the Synelnykove district TCC because his registration data had not been updated. The family last had contact with him that evening.
- 28.02.2026 - this date is listed in the death certificate. According to Skelia's response to Hromadske, soldier Batura's body was found without signs of life while he was being moved from the permanent deployment site to a temporary one in Karnaukhivka.
- 01.03.2026 - a criminal proceeding was opened over the death.
- 05.03.2026 - his mother received a death notification from the TCC; it described the death as related to military service, but not to the defense of the country.
Circumstances of the incident
Vitaliy Batura was a 43-year-old resident of Synelnykove district. His sister said that she saw bruises on his body in the morgue and suspects he may have been beaten before his death.
In its response to Hromadske, the 425th Skelia regiment said that a special inquiry had been conducted and that forensic examination identified acute cardiovascular failure and alcoholic cardiomyopathy as the cause of death. The regiment also claimed that no violence was used against Batura. This is recorded as the military unit's position, not as an independently verified conclusion.
Investigation status
Hromadske reported that a criminal proceeding was opened on 1 March. At the time of publication, journalists were waiting for a response from the Prosecutor General's Office on the status of the investigation.