On April 27, 2026, the Main Investigation Department of the Security Service of Ukraine reported that two russian employees of pre-trial detention center No. 2 in the city of Vyazma had been notified of suspicion under Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

Who are the suspects

• Ihor Ihorеvich Shtapurenko (born September 4, 1996) is a native of Sychivka, Smolensk region, russia. At the time of the alleged crimes, he served as head of the regime department of the federal state institution “Pre-Trial Detention Center No. 2 of the Federal Penitentiary Service of russia for Smolensk region” in Vyazma, located approximately 320 km north of Chernihiv and Sumy regions.
• Alexey Nikolaevich Zakharov (born May 20, 1987) is a native of Kholm-Zhyrkovskyi district of Smolensk region. He served as deputy head of Detention Center No. 2 in Vyazma.

Circumstances of the crime

Shtapurenko and Zakharov, as senior officials of the facility, are responsible for the systematic torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war.

The investigation documented at least nine episodes between 2022 and 2025 involving the suspects.

Torture in Detention Center No. 2 in Vyazma began with the so-called “reception” — a group beating immediately upon the prisoners’ arrival. In one case, the victim received around 100 blows to the torso, back, and legs with rubber batons and a wooden racket.

Every morning and evening, during cell inspections, prisoners were forced to assume the “star” position: facing the wall, arms raised above the head with palms outward, legs spread as wide as possible. During this, they were beaten with sticks, rubber batons, and boards on the back, buttocks, arms, and legs.

Both suspects used electric shock devices. In one instance, at least 15 electric shocks were recorded during a single “interrogation.”

In one episode, a particularly brutal “reception” caused the victim to lose consciousness: Zakharov stepped on his head and pressed him to the floor, while another officer used an electric shock device. When the man regained consciousness, he was dragged to a cell and deliberately struck his head against a metal door frame, causing him to lose consciousness again. He was then forced to crawl into the cell.

Among the victims are Ukrainian servicemen captured in Mariupol (including at the Illich plant and “Azovstal”), as well as in the areas of Kamianske, Klishchiivka, Makiivka, and Lyptsi.

Suspicion

Shtapurenko and Zakharov have been notified of suspicion under Part 1 of Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine — cruel treatment of prisoners of war.

Their actions also qualify as inhuman treatment under Article 8 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and constitute a war crime.

Criminal proceedings No. 4202200000000468 were registered on 15.04.2022.