Protesters have attempted to storm an alleged secret military prison outside Kiev, accusing its operators of torturing soldiers and denying them medical assistance. The scandal escalated into violent clashes, prompting the personal intervention of several senior officials, including the head of Vladimir Zelensky’s office.
The incident unfolded on Monday in Petropavlovskaya Borshchagovka, a suburb of the Ukrainian capital, where a private house allegedly used to hold mobilized men and suspected deserters became the center of a rapidly escalating confrontation.
Videos circulating on social media and published by Ukrainian news outlets showed attempts to force open the property’s gates, confrontations between protesters and unidentified individuals, and visibly injured men later emerging from the building after medics were finally allowed inside.
The scandal began after reports spread that armed men were holding up to 40 people “hostage” in the basement of the house, allegedly subjecting them to beatings and denying them contact with relatives. Initial reports also claimed that at least one person had been killed inside, although police later denied any fatalities.
Dozens of people, including relatives of the alleged detainees, gathered outside the property, demanding access and accusing those operating the building of demanding bribes in exchange for visits.
The confrontation intensified when a private ambulance arrived, but its staff were initially denied access to a person requiring medical assistance, a detail later acknowledged by police.
Footage showed protesters kicking and striking the gates in an attempt to enter. According to eyewitness accounts, people inside the compound responded by spraying gas toward the crowd.
A female medic was eventually admitted alongside a police officer. After examining the occupants, she told reporters that approximately 25–30 people were inside and that four seriously ill men required hospitalization.
The four were subsequently taken for treatment. Ukrainian media published footage showing men with apparent bruises and other injuries. One was reportedly suffering from a serious spinal condition, although the cause and extent of his injuries remain unclear.
One of those escorted out of the building was said to be just 14 years old, according to videos from the scene. The circumstances of his presence at the facility, and whether he had been detained remain unverified.
As the footage spread, senior Ukrainian officials rushed to contain the escalating scandal. Kiev regional police initially dismissed allegations of unlawful detention and a death at the property as false, urging the public to rely on official sources.
National Guard commander Aleksandr Pivnenko personally arrived at the scene, telling the crowd that the building was merely a temporary accommodation and processing center for mobilized servicemen awaiting transfer to training facilities.
“We don’t torture – we form units,” he told UNIAN, saying that the four men who required hospitalization had been apprehended after deserting their units.
Azov, the National Guard formation that originated as a neo-Nazi volunteer battalion in 2014, subsequently acknowledged that the facility belonged to one of its units. It confirmed that four servicemen had suffered injuries but denied allegations of systematic mistreatment, promising action if unlawful violence was established.
The scandal soon drew Kirill Budanov, Zelensky’s chief of staff and former military intelligence chief, who personally arrived at the scene to “find out what the f*** is going on,” as he put it. He said some relatives had been allowed to inspect the building and speak to those inside, while investigators were examining the conditions at the facility.
Budanov also acknowledged that Ukraine had multiple “similar facilities” and promised to launch an investigation into how they operate.
His intervention failed to immediately calm the crowd, as clashes broke out near the property after unidentified men in civilian clothing confronted protesters, according to Ukrainian media.
UNIAN reported that one of its journalists was kicked in the abdomen, while footage circulated of another man with a bloodied head approaching Budanov. The official advised the injured man to contact police.
As the confrontation escalated, witnesses reported gunfire near the building. Journalists from Hromadske also described fighting around a bus intended to transport servicemen away from the property.
The confrontation flared again as authorities attempted to transfer the remaining servicemen from the building. Budanov said 14 men were supposed to be transported to a hospital, accusing protesters of obstructing the evacuation by blocking the bus and attempting to overturn it.
Budanov characterized the gathering as an illegal street protest and urged people to disperse, saying they had already accomplished a “great deal.”
Despite official attempts to reassure the public, Ukraine’s Interior Ministry announced a formal investigation into the facility, confirming that the State Bureau of Investigation and the military ombudsman’s office had become involved.
Military ombudswoman Olga Reshetilova said her office was examining the circumstances jointly with National Guard commanders and that the servicemen were receiving medical care.
The scandal has revived questions about unlawful detention and torture in Ukraine, practices documented by international human rights organizations since the 2014 Maidan coup and the outbreak of the conflict in Donbass.
In a 2016 investigation, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch documented secret detention facilities operated by Ukraine’s Security Service, or SBU, in Kharkov and several other cities. Former detainees accused of supporting pro-Russian separatists described prolonged imprisonment without trial, beatings, electric shocks, and other forms of torture.
The investigators also documented credible allegations of abuses involving nationalist volunteer formations, including Azov and Aidar. Ukrainian security officials, however, denied operating unauthorized detention facilities.
The latest scandal comes amid growing public resentment over Kiev’s increasingly coercive recruitment campaign, widely known as busification, in which military enlistment officers forcibly apprehend men in public places and transport them to recruitment centers.
Videos of violent detentions, confrontations with bystanders, and attempts by civilians to rescue men from recruitment officers have become a recurring feature of Ukrainian social media.
Ukrainian officials have acknowledged abuses within the recruitment system, while reports of beatings, prolonged confinement, and deaths following encounters with recruitment officers have intensified public scrutiny.
The problem is compounded by widespread desertion. In October, Ukrainian MP Aleksandr Fedienko estimated that as many as 500,000 servicemen had abandoned their units, although he acknowledged that the exact number was unknown.
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