General Prosecutor Venediktova: of 290 civilians killed by occupying forces in Irpin, 105 bodies remain unidentified
DENYS KARLOVSKYI — TUESDAY, 3 MAY 2022, 16:01
The Office of the Prosecutor General said that 105 bodies remain unidentified of the 290 bodies of Irpin civilians exhumed for examination and reburial.
Source: briefing of Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova on air during 24/7 national newscast
Venediktova's quote: "Prosecutors and investigators have recorded the enemy’s use of anti-personnel mines, 72-mm and 120-mm mortar mines, Iskander-M aeroballistic missiles, shrapnel shells equipped with arrow-shaped striking elements on civilians, all of which is considered to be in violation of military laws and customs of war. These weapons are banned by the Geneva Conventions.
During the inspection of the scene, 290 bodies were delivered for forensic examination: 161 men, 73 women, 1 child and 55 other human remains.
Can you imagine that when we are in the 21st century, in the heart of a very European, beautiful, tidy city, we are saying such things now… And we can’t even talk about bodies - we’re talking about human remains.
185 have already been identified, and 105 - at this time, remain unidentified. Forensic examinations have been partially completed."
Details: Venediktova added that shrapnel was the cause of death for 35 people, gunshot wounds for 40 people. Closed brain injuries were confirmed as the cause of death in 5 cases.
In 110 cases, the cause of death could not be determined through forensic examination.
Investigators and prosecutors interrogated 228 Irpin residents as witnesses of the occupiers' crimes. During interrogations, prosecutors confirmed 7 locations of mass shootings and burial sites.
The Prosecutor General added that for two weeks after the liberation of the city in late March, prosecutors carried out aerial photography of the city from drones and shot video from cars, after which all material evidence was collected.
According to the data collected, prosecutors divided the city into "squares", each of which was assigned to a group of law enforcement officers to collect and analyse physical evidence and testimony.
Venediktova insisted that the Ukrainian judiciary will pass sentences on every Russian occupier involved in the mass murder and torture of civilians in Irpin. According to her, the first stage of the investigation into the crimes of the Russian occupiers in the Kyiv region is underway. The materials gathered on the crimes committed in Irpin have made it possible to publish the preliminary results of the investigation.
Background:
- The Office of the Prosecutor General has confirmed the deaths of more than 1,200 civilians in Russian-occupied settlements in the Kyiv region.
- After the liberation of Irpin from Russian occupation, local authorities reported that about three hundred civilians had been killed in the city. Some people had been crushed by the Russian military with tanks. Mayor Oleksandr Markushyn said that in some places human remains had to be removed from the asphalt with shovels.
