103 criminal cases over non-combat deaths in the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ “Skala” regiment: one referred to court

Police have opened 103 criminal cases concerning non-combat deaths in the 425th Separate Assault Regiment of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, “Skala.”

This was reported on Facebook by Verkhovna Rada deputy from the Servant of the People party, Oleksandr Fedienko.

According to the MP, investigations are currently ongoing in 61 cases. Suspicion notices have been issued in three of them, and one case has been referred to court. 41 proceedings have been closed, and another 18 are being reviewed by prosecutors.

Fedienko particularly emphasized that the number of opened cases does not mean proven crimes; however, he said the situation demands close attention to the conditions in which servicemembers are held at military units.

The scandal surrounding the “Skala” regiment erupted in June, when journalists published a high-profile investigation into the torture and deaths of recruits in the unit. Subsequently, media staff established that soldiers were being killed for attempting to go AWOL. At the end of July, the first arrests were made at “Skala” in connection with cases of soldiers being beaten.