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Ukraine extradites Russian soldier to Lithuania over war crimes against Lithuanian citizen

Par :Yuri Zoria

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A Russian marine accused of torturing a Lithuanian citizen in occupied Ukraine has been extradited to Lithuania from Ukraine. This is the first time Ukraine has handed over a Russian suspect to a foreign country for war crimes prosecution since Russia's full-scale invasion began.

Amid the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Russian military has repeatedly committed war crimes in Ukraine by launching deliberate attacks on civilians, civilian infrastructure and surrendering soldiers, while also subjecting detainees to torture. These actions include summary executions, forced displacement, physical and sexual abuse of prisoners of war and civilians.

Lithuanian court detains Russian soldier over torture of Lithuanian citizen

A Russian soldier suspected of torturing civilians, including a Lithuanian national, in occupied Melitopol has been extradited to Lithuania, Liga and Delfi reported on 31 October. The man, identified as a senior seaman from the 177th Naval Infantry Regiment of Russia’s Caspian flotilla, was transferred on 29 October and placed in pretrial detention in Vilnius for three months by court order the following day.

Lithuanian Prosecutor General Nida Grunskienė announced the extradition at a press conference, calling it a landmark moment in international cooperation. Ukrainian Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, who authorized the transfer, joined her in Vilnius for the announcement.

According to Grunskienė, the crimes were committed between March and September 2022. During that period, Russian troops established a filtration camp at the Melitopol military airfield in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. The site became a hub for illegal detention, torture, and abuse of civilians and prisoners of war, including at least one Lithuanian citizen.

Authorities say the suspect was directly involved in guarding and abusing detainees. Grunskienė detailed the torture methods allegedly used by the man and his fellow soldiers: beatings, electric shocks, suffocation until unconsciousness, hanging captives by their bound arms, dousing them with freezing water, and confining them in metal safes.

Robotyne on the map.

Ukrainian forces captured the suspect in August 2023 near the village of Robotyne in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Kravchenko says. He has since been charged in Lithuania under articles relating to war crimes against civilians and prisoners of war, torture, unlawful imprisonment, and violations of the Geneva Conventions. If convicted, he faces 10 to 20 years or a life sentence.

Kyiv and Vilnius stress message to war criminals

Kravchenko emphasized that the transfer of the suspect was not only a legal step but also a warning.

“This is a clear message to every war criminal: you will not escape responsibility in any country of the free world. Justice will be served,” he said, as cited by Liga.

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