After the TCC — nearly two months of searching: a man was found dead in Cherkasy Oblast

The disappearance and death of Serhii, a resident of Zolotonosha, are under investigation in Cherkasy Oblast. Contact with him was lost after he visited the Zvenyhorodka Territorial Recruitment and Social Support Center. His body was found about 120 kilometers from home.

Dmytro Lubinets, the Human Rights Commissioner of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, spoke about the case. He said the man’s funeral took place yesterday. His family still does not know what his final days were like or the circumstances of his death.

According to the ombudsman, TCC staff took Serhii to Zvenyhorodka, about 140 kilometers from his home. Witnesses said the man had an epileptic seizure. Despite this, the military medical commission deemed him fit for military service, after which he was assigned to an assault brigade.

According to the available information, the military unit refused to accept Serhii. The TCC claims that the man was released and dropped off afterward. There was no contact with him from that point on. His relatives searched for him for almost two months.

A criminal case was opened over the man’s disappearance under Part 1 of Article 115 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. However, a forensic examination was unable to determine the cause of his death.

Dmytro Lubinets said he would seek answers to the key questions in the case:

• Why was Serhii deemed fit for service when witnesses said he had suffered an epileptic seizure?
• Why, after the assault brigade refused to accept him, did the man end up far from home at night, without a phone or money?
• What caused his death, and will an internal investigation be conducted?

The Ombudsman’s Office is already handling the case. While Dmytro Lubinets is away on an official visit, his representative in Cherkasy Oblast, Mariana Nishchenko, remains in regular contact with the deceased man’s relatives.

According to the ombudsman, as soon as he received information about Serhii’s disappearance, inquiries were sent to:

• the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine;
• the Office of the Prosecutor General;
• the central administration of the Military Law Enforcement Service;
• the regional administration of the Military Law Enforcement Service.

After the man’s death became known, additional inquiries were sent to:

• the Cherkasy Regional TCC and SP;
• the Main Directorate of the National Police in Cherkasy Oblast.

The ombudsman is demanding a comprehensive, objective, and impartial investigation: establish Serhii’s entire route, examine the actions of all officials involved, and provide a legal assessment of every decision made. He has separately demanded a full explanation of the incident from the Cherkasy Regional TCC and SP.

“The fact that Serhii has already been buried does not mean this case can be closed without answers. His family has the right to know the truth. And society has the right to know who is responsible, and for what,” stressed Dmytro Lubinets.

He also emphasized that human rights violations during mobilization measures are unacceptable. Officials must be held accountable for such violations, including at the level of military leadership.

We previously reported:

• Wounded man forced to remove a bullet himself: SBI exposes brutal methods used by TCC staff
• Fit for service — and dead: SBI investigates the death of Volodymyr Kolesnyk after a military medical commission in Mykolaiv Oblast
• Death of a serviceman from Mykolaiv Oblast and 25 other cases: investigation into the Skelia Regiment
• “Bureaucratic difficulties”: TCC explains the death of a mobilized man with paperwork, not bruises
• Three days without contact: official’s son disappears overnight in Mykolaiv — TCC suspected