Around 11:30 am on May 8th, in Makeyevka, a group of armed men broke into the home of Alexander Demko, the authorized representative of the Ukrainian presidential candidate of the “Svoboda” party, Oleg Tyagniboka. Demko was beaten and taken away to an unknown location. This is known because Demko, seeing the armed men through his window, called his friend Pavel Derkachenko, informed him of what was happening and laid the phone down in the room, with Derkachenko still on the line. Derkachenko could therefore hear everything that was happening. He heard the intruders demand that Demko confess to having links with the “right sector” and subversive activities against the supporters of the PRD and to provide the names and addresses of other members of the “Svoboda” party. He heard what sounded like blows, smashing furniture and breaking dishes. Then someone said, “If you don’t want to speak, we will quickly untie your tongue on the fifth floor.” By this, they apparently meant the fifth floor of the regional administration building in Donetsk.
Upon receiving information about this event, one of the few remaining social activists in Donetsk engaging in human rights work (whose name has been withheld for security reasons) informed the regional police chief K. Pozhidaev about the crime. The same day, the activist called the Makeyevka police and discovered that Demko was in the miners’ hospital in Makeyevka. He suffered from physical trauma – a piece of metal was found in his stomach during an operation which no one could recognize. However, according to unofficial information from the doctors, Demko had a bullet wound in his stomach.
The next day, doctors tried to move Demko outside of the Donetsk region due to security concerns. Demko was taken in an ambulance and accompanied by a doctor named Galina Ivanova. However, the car never arrived in Dnepropetrovsk. Later, an empty car with bullet holes was found on the bypass road between Donetsk and Makeyevka. The fate of Alexander Demko, Galina Ivanova and the driver is not known.
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On April 28th, after supporters of the PRD violently dispersed a “March for United Ukraine” in Donetsk, six students who participated in the march were captured by unidentified armed men.
On the evening of April 28th, six young people (four students of Donetsk National University, one vocational school student and one apprentice college student) were sitting in the yard of a house near the venue of the march, drinking beer and discussing the day’s events. At around 10:00 pm, a group of armed men entered the yard, searched the students and forced them to undress. In their pockets they found blue and yellow ribbons sported by proponents of a united Ukraine and discovered some tattoos of Ukrainian symbolism. A minibus drove into the yard and headed for the young people. One of the six managed to escape and ran away. Thanks to him, others were alerted to the abduction of the five young people.
In discussion with the mission members, one of the leaders of the PRD movement claimed that the students were detained due to the supposed presence of swastika tattoos which the captors took as an indication that they were involved with the “Right Sector” and should therefore be interrogated.
The five young men were taken to the fifth floor of the regional administration building and were beaten in order to obtain confessions of their involvement with the “Right Sector”. They were beaten with fists, rifle butts and one student had a gun pointed at his chest and was told that he would be shot immediately. As a result of this treatment, some of the students were forced to make partial “confessions” which were captured on video. It was claimed that the captured students were found with weapons – laying on the floor next to the seated students were guns that had allegedly been discovered in the student’s possession (VIDEO AVAILABLE ONLINE).
Immediately upon learning of the abduction of the young people, activists of the “March for United Ukraine”, human rights activists and the students’ parents appealed to the police, the city administration and the UN observation mission in Donetsk. As a result, at four o’clock in the morning on April 29th, all five students were released, taken to the police department and then transferred to the hospital. The condition of the freed youths was grave. One of them had two broken ribs, another had a broken nose, two had head injuries and one had a broken arm.
The next day, during a press conference, the head of the administration of Donetsk, Alexander Lukyanchenko, stated, “With regard to the five hostages who were captured by supporters of federalization, they were released after lengthy negotiation.” (VIDEO AVAILABLE ONLINE)
Participants in these negotiations told the mission representatives that securing the release of the five students was challenging not only because they were captured by supporters of the PRD, but because several others did not want the release of “fascists”.
After their liberation, the students were not left in peace. They learned that some supporters of the PRD were still looking for them because they believed they had not fully “understood” the students. Additionally, they were sought by police officers who insisted that they retract statements they had made demanding criminal charges against those who kidnapped and beat them. As a result, they were forced to write an application to retract their previous testimony and then they left Donetsk.
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On May 2nd, Nicolai Yakubovich, a retired policeman who had moved to Donetsk from Brest (Belarus), was kidnapped. During the standoff on the Maidan in Kiev, he had commanded hundreds of self-defense protestors. Later he became an advisor to the Secretary of National Security and Defense of Ukraine, Andrei Parubiya, and led supporters of a unified Ukraine in Donetsk. According to media reports, he said that “his people are ready to wage a guerrilla war against the militias of the PRD.”
Right before his abduction, Yakubovich headed to an appointment he had with someone outside of the McDonald’s restaurant. In front of witnesses, a group of armed men arrived in a Jeep and shot at the car containing Yakubovich, injuring him. Yakubovich was then thrown into the car and driven to an unknown location.
It later became known that he was being held on the fifth floor of the regional administration building occupied by supporters of the PRD. There he was interrogated and tortured. He was later transferred to the TV and radio broadcasting center and subsequently released on May 6th, apparently in exchange for the release of detained supporters of the PRD.
On May 5th, a video was posted online (VIDEO) featuring a masked man with a PRD flag in the background proclaiming that, “responsibility for the capture of the anti-terrorist operation coordinator in Donbass takes on the Russian Orthodox army.”
Yakubovich then appears briefly; the condition of his face and head leaving no doubt that he had been beaten.
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Supporters of the PRD are seeking to establish control over mines in the Donetsk region. Apparently, this was the cause for the abduction of the Director General of the state association “Artyomugol”, Nicholas Alysheva, on May 5th in Gorlovk (45 kilometers north of Donetsk). A group of armed PRD militants seized him and his manager of Social Affairs, Edward Nanarov, at their workplace. They were taken to the building of the Gorlovka Department of the Interior which had been occupied by PDR supporters. There they were severely beaten, and Alysheva was forced to sign a document declaring the resignation of four mine directors. As a result of their treatment, Alysheva’s jaw was fractured and he had trauma to the head and spine. Both of the kidnapped men were released on May 6th. There are unverified reports that a ransom was paid to secure Alysheva’s release.
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During the day on May 7th, in the village Shandrigolovo in the Krasnoliamansk district, local farmer Valeri Salo was kidnapped in front of witnesses. His car, which was in the center of the village, was blocked by armed men who arrived in several cars. They pulled Salo out of his vehicle, beat him and threw him in the trunk. One of the armed men got behind the wheel and drove off in the direction of the Lugansk region.
The next day, on May 8th, in the Grekovskaya forest near the administrative border of three regions – Lugansk, Donetsk and Kharkov – policemen found a burned out car with the body of a man inside. The body and the car were taken to the Lugansk region where, upon examination, it was determined that the body was that of V.V. Salo and the car had been registered to him. A criminal case has been lodged.
Valeri Salo was a supporter of a unified Ukraine and an active member of the cultural and educational NGO “Enlightenment”, which promotes and develops Ukrainian culture.
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On April 19th in Kostiantynivka (60 kilometers north of Donetsk), armed men abducted 42-year-old Yaroslav Malanciuc, a member of the District Electoral Commission from the “Svoboda” party. In front of witnesses, he was seized on the street near a shopping center, forced to his knees, bound and thrown in a car which drove off to an unknown location.
According to unconfirmed reports, Malanciuc is currently being held in the basement of the Ukrainian Security Service in Slavyansk which is occupied by PRD supporters.
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On the night of April 30th to May 1st, the leader of the local branch of the “Svoboda” party, Artyom Popik (born in 1988) was kidnapped in Kostiantynivka.
Mission representatives from HRC “Memorial” interviewed Popik’s mother, Lubov Nikolaeva Popik, who stated the following:
Around 12 o’clock at night, Artyom was smoking in the yard of their private home. Suddenly, he ran into the house clutching his face and shouting “Follow me! Come!” He managed to slam the door to the house and told his mother that he had been hit in the face by a tear gas can. At that moment the door started to be broken down. It soon gave way and tree people burst in – two men in masks, camouflage and holding a gun and a pistol, and the third in civilian clothes without a mask or weapons. While the attackers had been breaking down the door, Artyom Popik was able to call someone and inform them of what was happening and then dialed the police to ask for help. He tried to hide and climbed under the bed, but one of the men turned the bed over and pulled him out by the collar. They threw him on the floor, held his hands behind his back and handcuffed him. They took him barefoot out to the street and threw him into the trunk of a car that was parked in front of the Popiks’ gate. When his mother asked, “Where are you taking him?” they responded “to be brainwashed.”
The car containing Popik drove off. Fifteen minutes later the police came to the house. They interviewed Popik’s mother, examined the crime scene and made a report. However, the police did not attempt to pursue the kidnappers.
At the moment, a criminal investigation into the abduction has been launched. The fate and whereabouts of Artyom Popik are not known. There is some information that A. Popik is being held by PRD supporters in the basement of the Ukrainian Security Service building in Slavyansk.
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On May 9th and 10th relatives of 20-year-old EuroMaidan participant and member of the “Svoboda” party, Yuri Benedyuka were taken from his home in the suburbs of Makeyevki.
Yuri Benedyuk, fearing for his safety, left the Donetsk region. However, he was extremely active on social media, occasionally posting offensive remarks about supporters of the PRD. It is possible that this triggered the incident with his relatives.
On May 9th in Buroz (in the Khanzhonkov town of Makeyevki), policemen and several representatives of the PRD came to the house of Yuri Benedyuka’s mother and step-father, Elena Benedyuk and Yuri Myacoed. They were looking for Yuri, but unable to find him, they apprehended his step-father, claiming that he had participated in a drunken brawl.
The next day, members of the PRD arrived, unaccompanied by police, to another apartment where Yuri Benedyuk was registered. At the time, Yuri’s mother and several other relatives were in the apartment. The members of the militiamen declared that they were taking his mother hostage. They then called Yuri on his cell phone and demanded that he present himself to them.
Information about the incident quickly spread across Ukrainian media and publications. Later it was reported that Yuri received a phone call from an unknown number, demanding a ransom of the release of his relatives in the amount of one hundred thousand dollars.
However, on May 12, Elena Benedyuk and Yuri Myasoed were returned home, as reported by Yuri Benedyuk himself. Some Ukrainian journalists have questioned the veracity of this story. During the mission, we ourselves were unable to determine the authenticity of these claims.
However, a clip posted online by supporters of the PRD on the evening of May 11th, the day of the referendum, convinces us that Elena Benedyuk and Yuri Myacoed were indeed forcibly taken from their home and were held in the City Council building of Makeyevki which is occupied by PRD supporters.
The creators of the clip sought to refute the widely broadcast information about the capture of the two hostages in Makeyevka, but instead managed to produce strongly self-incriminating material. (VIDEO)
In the clip, a husband and wife are shown not to be in their house, but rather in the occupied City Council building and are answering questions posed by an unknown person.
- “Yesterday, the media reported that you were taken hostage. What would you say?”
Yuri Myacoed: “That didn’t happen to us. On the contrary, we were being guarded so that we could move from Donetsk oblast to Dnepropetrovsk. <…> I think it is because of my stepson who is in the “Svoboda” party.”
- “How do you feel here?”
Yuri Myacoed and Elena Benedyuk: “Good. There are doctors here and they fed us and gave us tea.”
“Have you been here before?” “No” “Where did you get that black eye from?”
Yuri Myacoed: “It’s part of everyday life”
“How do you feel about the political activities of your son?”
Yuri Myacoed and Elena Benedyuk: “Bad”. <…>
“Are you going to vote in the referendum?”
Yuri Myacoed and Elena Benedyuk: “Of course”
“What do you think about the political situation in the country?”
Yuri Myacoed: “I think that we would be better off joining Russia.
This was followed by footage of Yuri Myacoed and Elena Benedyuk going to vote. The voting took place on the street, there are no voter lists and data from their passports is entered onto blank sheets lying in front a worker. Upon receiving their ballots, both immediately open them (apparently there are no booths), put a tick and cast their ballots in the ballot box standing on the table where they are issuing ballots.
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It is not only the opponents of PRD that are kidnapped, but also activists within the PRD structure itself. Apparently, the reason for this is the internal conflicts between supporters of the PRD. An example is the attempted kidnapping of Edward Akulov, the commander of a formation calling itself “the Eastern Front”. He was captured and beaten on April 13th in Makeyeva (a city adjacent to Donetsk to the north-east).
Akulov (who is retired and engaged in small business endeavors), told members of the mission from HRC “Memorial” that the “Eastern Front” which he leads, includes residents of the Donetsk region who support the idea of creating an independent PRD. According to him, it is the “Eastern Front” that pushed him to become the “Commissioner” of the formation as a deputy to the PRD. Some friction arose between the “Eastern Front” and local criminal gangs who tried to enter into the formation and immediately started a call to take up arms. However, Akulov and its Commissariat viewed the goal of the “Eastern Front” in a different way. “First of all, we want to work with the masses and get the support of the population. If we immediately take up arms, then we are just thugs.” According to Akulov, he was not interested in participating in criminal activities. Afterwards, the leadership of the “Eastern Front” had to expel members who showed a lack of discipline and a penchant for looting.
On April 13th, around 9:30 pm, Eduard Akulov learned that a crowd had stormed the Makeyevka City Council building and he met with several of his subordinates from the “Eastern Front” nearby, since he felt it was important to be aware of what was happening. There, he was attacked by a dozen unarmed people in masks. During the abduction they shouted that they were law enforcement officers of the PRD and that they were carrying out the detention of those suspected of having links to the “Right Sector”. Akulov was thrown into a nearby parked car and driven to the outskirts of Makeyevka, where he was then beaten. One of the kidnappers took off his mask and Akulov recognized him as one of the former members of the “Eastern Front” who had been kicked out for a lack of discipline and calling for looting. Two other well-known criminal authorities were also there who said, “We offered to interact with you, but you refused…” Akulov demanded to be released and told the kidnappers that they would not get away with such violence. In response, they stated that they intended to deliver him to the Donetsk regional administration building, occupied by PRD supporters and where their headquarters are located, saying, “there they will figure out what to do with him.” According to Akulov, a few days earlier an “unpleasant dispute” took place in the regional administration building and he feared that this dispute would continue and have a bad outcome for him if he were transferred to that building.
Nevertheless, the kidnappers loaded him into a car and drove towards Donetsk. Akulov suggested that they call one of the members of the PRD leadership, which they did. The person they called chastised the kidnappers. After this conversation, the kidnappers stopped the car for some time and deliberated among themselves what to do next. They then began to drive Akulov to a new location. At this point, due to the weakened control of the captors, Akulov was able to jump from the moving car and escape. However, he hit his head on the ground, receiving a head injury, and had to spend three weeks in the hospital.
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