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Kyiv official under house arrest over closed shelter case

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Kyiv official under house arrest over closed shelter case
A member of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine checking bomb shelters. Published on June 11, 2023. (Source: State Emergency Service of Ukraine/Facebook)

The Holosiivskyi District Court in Kyiv put Roman Tkachuk, the head of Kyiv's Municipal Security Department, under house arrest for suspected negligence over a closed shelter which three people died trying to access during a Russian attack on June 1, the Kyiv City Council said on June 21.

According to the investigators, Tkachuk did not ensure the accessibility of shelters in the Desnianskyi micro-district and is therefore responsible for the three victims.

The suspect reportedly denied responsibility, saying it lies with the district's administration, the State Emergency Service, and the owners of the object where the shelter is located.

The incident that cost the lives of two women and a 9-year-old child sparked outrage toward the state and city authorities. The government initiated audits of all of the country's shelters and launched investigations against those responsible for the deaths of the victims.

On June 3, the Holosiivskyi District Court arrested a 62-year-old clinic night guard who failed to open the shelter at the time of the Russian attack.

On June 12, the audit revealed that over 30% of bomb shelters in the country and around 35% in Kyiv are unsuitable or inaccessible.

Clinic guard arrested over locked bomb shelter that led to civilian deaths in Kyiv
In an unexpected turn that left many commentators dissatisfied, the June 3 arrest hearing appeared to put the majority of responsibility for the tragedy on the clinic’s elderly night guard.
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Martin Fornusek

Senior News Editor

Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.

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