"We were lying in blood, another man was also in feces. I asked for water. They didn't give it": resident of Kozacha Lopan told about tortures he endured in captivity of occupiers. PHOTOS
A 26-year-old resident of Kharkiv, Oleksiy Semikov, spoke about the torture he was subjected to by the Russian occupiers when he was taken prisoner.
As reported by Censor.NET, he told Hromadske about it.
Before his captivity, Oleksiy, a resident of Kozacha Lopan in the Kharkiv region, helped his compatriots survive the occupation - his village was captured by the Russians in the first days of a full-scale invasion. He got milk and flour. And after he went to Kharkiv to get medicine for the sick, he was tied up.
"On March 16, I was returning from Kharkiv. We passed our checkpoint - everything was fine. On the next too. And when I drove to Kozacha Lopan, at the fork, where the road leads to the center and the road, I was overtaken by UAZ. Several soldiers with machine guns jumped out of it. They opened the door, knocked me to the ground, and tied my hands and eyes.
"So you arrived. You are Oleksiy, you have two dogs, you live with your mother, at such and such an address. You will tell how you go to Kharkiv, if no one is allowed in or released there."
They took my mobile phone, cash, some documents, car keys - and took me somewhere. Behind the facade of the room, which I saw through the crack, I realized that it was a train station.
I was taken inside and thrown to the floor. A man in a military uniform was lying next to me. They beat him and shouted: "Where did you get your military uniform ?!"
He replied that a neighbor had given it to him for a bottle of vodka. It turned out that the occupiers went to the man's house, rummaged in his closets. There was a Ukrainian military uniform on the hanger. They didn't like the "neighbor" version, so they packed him up and brought to the basement, just like me. "
The aggressors were not worried about the fact that a diabetic child would be left without medication.
"They started beating me with a broom, a stick and asking about the situation in Kharkiv. I explained that people were walking around the city, shops and pharmacies were working, children were walking, communal services were being cleaned. After that they were beating even louder and shouting.
"You're a j*rk, it's all untrue! We have completely different information! People there are afraid to come out of the basements! There is no one there!"
They also asked what happened to military equipment and checkpoints. I replied that I saw only the police, and at the checkpoints - the military without equipment. All this time, they did not stop beating me and the man in military uniform. "
"Every few hours a new shift came, and the interrogations with beatings were repeated. I heard a man come into the basement. He approached me, picked me up, tied me to the battery, and started beating me with all his might.
"You jumped on the Maidan, you're definitely a Cossack!"
I replied that this was not the truth.
"What did you do 8 years ago?"
"I was at home in the village. And where exactly was I supposed to be 8 years ago?"
"You had to defend" LNR "and" DNR "!"
After these words, he hit me so hard on the hands that the tape with which I was tied to the battery was torn. People came and tied me back. And he started beating a man in military uniform. The blows were so strong that he almost wet the bed.
"Look, he's already shit, and you're not giving a sign. You're definitely a Nazi, you're definitely from Azov!"
It got to the point that I stopped feeling pain. We were untied and thrown to the floor. "
After that came another change of occupiers.
"We were lying in blood, another man was still in the feces. I asked for water. They didn't give it.
"We were told that you are a nationalist - be patient. Maybe someone else will bring."
We were beaten, but not as hard as before. Suddenly I heard explosions, the military began to run into the basement. They shouted that we were being fired upon by the Armed Forces. The explosions did not stop, the military became more and more. They also threatened to take us out, tie us to a tree - and let us be fired upon. I told them to take me out. They hit again.
"Who needs you, lie down."
Then I realized that I was unlikely to be killed. Because at one point there were still thoughts that it would be better to kill me than to endure this bullying.
I heard the military talking to each other. They said that "it was not necessary to allow civilians to walk through the center of the village," they said, "there were definitely gunners, they merged all our equipment. And now we need to go urgently and pack everyone."
After that, they ran out - and later began to bring civilians. Also blindfolded and handcuffed. They were thrown to the floor and beaten. We haven't been touched yet. "
The basement was filled with people. A farmer's husband was placed next to me. I recognized him, he has his own stable, a big house in a nearby village. He asked, "Why did you take us? We just sat at home with our family, had lunch."
He was beaten and shouted back: "Where did you get the money for such a house? Do you have the money?"
He promised to give all the money so that they would not beat his son, because he had leukemia.
At that moment, they began beating their son.
Eventually, we were all taken outside. It was necessary to kneel in the snow and rest your head on the wall. We were called in turn for a conversation. I stood like that for three hours, maybe more. I even fell asleep. Got frostbite.
From the basement came the sounds of beating and moaning people. So it was with everyone. I thought it would be my turn, but suddenly we were taken back to the basement.
A new change of military came. I heard, "Look what cool shoes this farmer has. Just your size is 44."
And they began to take off the shoes of this man and the rest of the people, and instead gave torn galoshes. I was wearing light sneakers, they didn't come to me. "
Within a few days, the prisoners began to be involved in forced labor:
"They promised to return the car. I reminded them that there were food, medicine, cash.
"We will give you the car, but if you go somewhere, we will find you and shoot you. And if we don't catch you, we will recognize you as an enemy of the people, we will say that you are a gunner, you surrender positions we will find, you surrender ".
I assured that I would not go anywhere. They agreed to let me go, but before that they told me to clear the territory. They gave an ax to break off the ice. As soon as I picked it up, I felt dizzy and fainted.
When he regained consciousness, he saw a frightened man with ammonia next to him. He realized that I had not been allowed to eat or drink for three days. He brought tea and soup. I trembled, my eyes darkened.
A military man approached me and told me to go and break the ice anyway. I pretended to do something. It lasted until 8 pm.
Then all of us, nine people, were lined up. Three from the neighboring village came to help them, and six they decided to release. The man we were with from the beginning, too. He was very beaten. His uniform was burned. "
The invaders handed over the car the next day, before looting almost all the humanitarian aid that Oleksiy was carrying. Despite the threats, he decided to leave and is now probably the only one who managed to escape from the Kozacha Lopan:
"The next day, March 20, I was going to leave. I do sports, running, so the neighborhood in Kozacha Lopan within a radius of 10 kilometers I know very well, literally every track.
First I went through the neighboring village. That's where the farmer lived, with whom we were in the basement. I met all the locals who work for him, asked them to feed the horses.
But I did not manage to leave that road. There was a steep slide and snow.
I went back and decided to go the other way. It was clean there. I was driving slowly, I saw a Russian tank with open hatches in the field, I thought there were soldiers inside. But there was no one.
Next on the roadside was a car with Ukrainian license plates. The military man came out and asked for documents. I thought it might be the Russians undercover. But no, it was ours. I told them about everything I went through, and got in the car with them. I was given food, hot tea, and shown the way. And I was moving along the "green corridor" at all checkpoints.
Now I am safe, treated, and continue to help the elderly and loved ones.
And now it is impossible to leave Kozacha Lopan - all exits were blocked by the occupiers. There is no connection with the village. I know that hundreds of people have suffered from them. And I'm almost the only one who escaped. "
