Ukrainian Soldier Escorting Conscripts Shot

A Ukrainian soldier from the Poltava Territorial Recruitment Center (TRC) was shot at a gas station in the town of Pyriatyn while escorting conscripts to a training center, the Land Forces of Ukraine and National Police reported.

According to the Land Forces Command, the attack occurred on Feb. 1 when an unidentified man wearing a gray balaclava and pixelated pants approached the soldier, threatened him with a hunting rifle, and demanded his weapon.

“When the soldier refused, the attacker shot him. Due to a severe wound, the soldier died on the spot,” the statement read.

The assailant then seized the soldier’s assault rifle and fled the scene with an accomplice.

The National Police in turn reported receiving information about the shooting at a gas station along the Kyiv-Kharkiv-Dovzhansky highway around midnight on Jan. 31. An investigative team, including forensic experts, was immediately dispatched to the scene.

Authorities determined that two TRC employees had been transporting conscripts when the vehicle stopped at the gas station. At that moment, the attacker suddenly fired his hunting rifle at the TRC employee, stole his weapon, and escaped with an accomplice.

To apprehend the armed fugitives, police launched a special operation, “Siren.” Within hours, both suspects were located and detained.

“The shooter was identified as a resident of the Poltava region, born in 1984. His accomplice, also from Poltava, was born in 1988,” the police report said.

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Investigators seized the weapon during an urgent search, and authorities are now considering charges and preventive measures against the suspects. A pre-trial investigation has been launched.

The Land Forces Command condemned the attack and demanded the strictest punishment for those responsible.

“The murder of a serviceman in the line of duty is a serious crime that must be swiftly investigated,” the statement said.

Expressing condolences to the soldier’s family and friends, the Command vowed that his death “will not go unpunished.”

“We must stand together to stop criminals who threaten the lives of Ukraine’s defenders,” the report said.