The body of Ukrainian journalist Viktoriia Roshchyna, returned by Russia in February 2025, has revealed signs of torture, surgical dissection, and the removal of key internal organs. These findings form part of a wider international investigation into Russia’s treatment of Ukrainian civilians held in captivity, conducted under the Viktoriia Project.
Roshchyna, a freelance journalist for Ukrainska Pravda and Hromadske, disappeared on 3 August 2023 while travelling through occupied territories to report on the experiences of civilians in Russian custody. Her case came to public attention in October 2024 when the Russian Ministry of Defence notified her father that she had died on 19 September 2024. Her remains were repatriated during a body exchange on 14 February 2025, under the identifier “unidentified male” with the label “SPAS”.
Initial pathology in Ukraine determined the body to be female and confirmed, through DNA analysis, a 99% match with Viktoriia Roshchyna. Forensic experts noted extensive physical trauma including bruises, abrasions, a broken rib, and evidence suggesting the use of electric shock. A post-mortem examination found that certain internal organs were missing, including the brain, eyes, and part of the trachea. A consulting forensic pathologist indicated that this could be a deliberate attempt to obscure signs of suffocation.
The annotation “SPAS”, found in Russian documentation, is understood to mean “суммарное поражение артерий сердца” – total damage to heart arteries – listed as the official cause of death. Due to the advanced state of mummification, Ukrainian forensic experts were unable to determine the precise cause of death. The investigation into her death continues under the legal classification of a war crime involving intentional killing.
Roshchyna’s case is not isolated. As part of the Viktoriia Project, 13 international media organisations – including The Guardian, Le Monde, Der Spiegel, France 24 and The Washington Post – have gathered testimonies from dozens of former detainees, prison staff, and human rights advocates. These accounts document systematic abuse within both official and unofficial detention sites across occupied Ukraine and the Russian Federation.
In her earlier reporting, Roshchyna had already faced similar risks. In March 2022, she was detained by the FSB near Berdyansk while attempting to reach Mariupol. She was held for 10 days and released after being forced to record a video disavowing any grievance against her captors. Despite warnings from colleagues, she returned to the frontlines on multiple occasions.
Her final journey began in late July 2023. She crossed from Ukraine into Poland, and via Latvia into Russia, intending to reach occupied Melitopol. She last made contact with editors on 28 July. According to witnesses, she was detained shortly afterwards in Enerhodar, where she was reportedly held in a makeshift detention facility in a local police station known for the use of torture.
After a period in Melitopol, she was moved to SIZO No. 2 in Taganrog. There, according to former inmates, prisoners were held incommunicado – denied legal representation, family contact, or access to humanitarian organisations. Roshchyna reportedly began a hunger strike in protest at her detention. She was hospitalised mid-2024 due to extreme weight loss and weakness, before being returned to solitary confinement in the prison.
Her inclusion in a scheduled prisoner exchange in September 2024 was confirmed by Ukrainian authorities, including the Coordination Headquarters and the Main Intelligence Directorate. However, the exchange was never completed. One witness reported that on the day she was meant to be transferred, she was prepared for transport but never left the facility. The witness stated: “She didn’t make it. They said she had only herself to blame.”
Roshchyna was born in October 1996 and had worked extensively as a war correspondent. Her investigative reporting frequently focused on conditions under Russian occupation, including forced deportations and detention of civilians. She was due to be exchanged before her death, with plans in place to transfer her to Lefortovo prison in Moscow as part of the process.
The Viktoriia Project has identified 186 detention sites used by Russian forces for Ukrainian civilians, of which 29 show confirmed patterns of torture. In Taganrog alone, at least 15 Ukrainian detainees are reported to have died due to mistreatment. Many of the tactics used – including electric shocks, suffocation, starvation, and sexual violence – are described as standardised and carried out with institutional backing from the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN).
The body of evidence compiled suggests that such practices are not isolated or the result of individual misconduct, but rather part of a systemic policy. Reports from former FSIN officers and internal documents indicate that Russian authorities had prepared detention infrastructure to accommodate the anticipated influx of prisoners following the 2022 full-scale invasion.
The case of Viktoriia Roshchyna highlights both the personal cost of reporting from conflict zones and the broader context of abuses committed during Russia’s war in Ukraine. Her death remains under criminal investigation by Ukrainian prosecutors.
