On January 22-23, 2024, Russian propaganda media (1,2,3,4,5), including Московский Комсомолец, Аргументы и Факты and Военное обозрение, reported that the father of a young recruit in Kharkiv killed an employee of the commissariat. According to the media, the young man conscripted to the war suffered from asthma, and a few weeks ago he was caught on the street in front of his father and sent to the war without a medical examination, because of which his father killed a commissariat employee, and then threw his body on the railway tracks to simulate suicide. Most of the media outlets published the information accompanied by a photo showing a human body lying on the tracks in the snow. The logo of the Kharkiv District Prosecutor’s Office is also placed on the photo.
Information and photos were actively distributed by Georgian-language and Russian-language Facebook accounts as well (1,2,3,4,5).
The claim that the father of a recruit in Kharkiv killed an employee of the commissariat is disinformation. The photo published by the Kharkiv District Prosecutor’s Office is related to the murder that took place in Kharkiv District due to a dispute. According to the information reported by the official agencies, it is not confirmed that the victim was an employee of the commissariat.
The viral photo, together with the relevant description, was published by the Kharkiv District Prosecutor’s Office on January 19 and is related to the murder that took place in the district. Police of Kharkiv district also released information about the crime along with the photo.
According to the statements of the agencies, the body of the murdered man was found on the railway track near the village of Dubovka, Kharkiv region, on the evening of January 18. The investigation established that on January 17, friends gathered for a drink in Dubovka, during which a conflict arose between the 70-year-old suspect and his 57-year-old friend. The detainee inflicted several wounds on the victim’s neck with a kitchen knife, as a result of which the man died on the spot. In order to cover up the crime, the killer moved the body to the tracks to make it look like a suicide.
Russian-language propaganda sources create the impression that the Kharkiv District Prosecutor’s Office spread the information that the murdered employee was a commissariat employee, although this claim is not confirmed by the statements of the official agencies of Ukraine. Disinformation sources repeat other details from official statements, for example, that the murder was committed with a knife and that the body of the murdered person was moved to the railway tracks to stage a suicide. In the articles of the Russian media, it is also mentioned that the criminal was watching the murdered person and guarded him. In the official statements, it is mentioned that the murder took place after a quarrel between friends.
It should also be noted that the false claims are essentially only found in Russian sources, the Ukrainian media covered the official statement of the Prosecutor’s Office regarding the incident (1,2,3,4,5) and also the case of disinformation spread by the Russian side (1,2).
Disinformation often targets the issue of mobilization in Ukraine. In January 2024, false claims argued that an employee of the commissariat was killed while handing over the recruitment card. For more information, see the “Myth Detector” article:
However, it should also be noted that in December 2023, The New York Times published an extensive article on legislation related to mobilization in Ukraine. As part of the journalistic investigation, the publication talked to dozens of lawyers, activists, military personnel, recruits, and family members of recruits and got acquainted with letters and military and medical documents. As a result, it was revealed that there are many cases of illegal detention, intimidation, falsification of medical certificates, and bribery to avoid military service in Ukraine. The article mentions that the actions of commissariat employees in relation to mobilization have become particularly strict in the last 6 months, and despite the implementation of some anti-corruption measures by the authorities, the practice of giving bribes to avoid military service is still widespread.
About the Source
Facebook user Eduard Jishkariani often spreads anti-Western and anti-Ukrainian content, as well as disinformation, and manipulative claims. The false information spread by Jishkarian has been debunked by “Myth Detector” many times in the past.
Archive links: Московский Комсомолец, Аргументы и Факты, Военное обозрение, ZOV Херсон, ZOV Запорожье, Мрiя, Политикус, HORNEWS
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