The National Police of Ukraine has established the involvement of a russian paratrooper in four murders committed during the occupation of Bucha in March 2022.

What is known about the suspect

Anatoly Valerievich Pavlov (born July 31, 1990) is a russian citizen and a native of Chuvashia. At the time of the crimes, he served as a gun commander in the 2nd Battalion Tactical Group of the 234th Airborne Assault Regiment of the 76th Airborne Assault Division of the russian armed forces. He was registered in Pskov.

He acted as part of a unit under the command of platoon commander Yuriy Kim, who is identified in the case file as the direct organizer of most of the crimes.

The unit entered Bucha on February 27, 2022. By the end of March, russian servicemen controlled part of the city, including Staroyablunska, Shota Rustaveli, Naberezhna, Ivan Franko streets, and surrounding areas.

Circumstances of the crimes

• March 7

Around noon, Pavlov, together with Kim and at least five other servicemen, searched a local resident’s house and found evidence of his service in the ATO zone, as well as videos of destroyed russian equipment on his phone.

The man was taken to a neighboring yard, where he was called a “Banderite”, beaten, and shot in the right hand.

After failing to obtain the desired information, Kim ordered the detainee to be killed. The man was taken to a neighboring house, where Pavlov, together with another unidentified serviceman, shot him at least twice. He died from a penetrating gunshot wound to the head.

• March 12

Pavlov and other paratroopers searched another house and found items the owner had apparently collected from russian equipment destroyed in fighting on February 27. This was enough for Kim to label the residents as “persons who could oppose the occupation forces” and order their execution.

Pavlov, together with unidentified servicemen, shot two people in the yard of their house.

• March 26

At around 13:40, while patrolling the Lisova Bucha district, Pavlov noticed a civilian man leaving his yard and opened fire without warning, firing at least six shots. The victim died at the scene from a penetrating chest wound.

• March 28

Pavlov, together with Kim and six other soldiers, searched another house. During the search, one of the russian servicemen attempted to conceal a grenade under his clothing, but it fell out and remained in his hands.

After that, Pavlov ordered the civilian to enter the garage. When he refused, Pavlov fired a shotgun at his feet. The man survived, but the investigation classifies these actions as inhuman treatment of a civilian.

Suspicion

On March 13, 2026, an investigator of the Main Investigation Department of the National Police of Ukraine notified Pavlov in absentia of suspicion under two articles of the Criminal Code: cruel treatment of civilians (Part 1 of Article 438) and violation of the laws and customs of war combined with intentional murder (Part 2 of Article 438).

The suspect is currently in russia, so the investigation is being conducted under special pre-trial proceedings in absentia.