Media: Explosion that killed Zaluzhnyi aide likely an accident

The grenade explosion that killed Major Hennadii Chastiakov, an assistant of Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi, was likely the result of careless handling of ammunition, Interior Ministry spokesperson Mariana Reva told RFE/RL's Ukrainian service on Nov. 7.

An unnamed man had confessed to giving Chastiakov the grenade but also said that he had warned him that it was live. Chastiakov likely disregarded the warning, Reva said, and the grenade exploded. She added that the investigation was still ongoing.

Previously, it was reported on Nov. 6 that Chastiakov had been killed on his birthday by an explosive in one of his gifts at his home in Chaiky, Kyiv Oblast. His thirteen-year-old son was seriously injured in the explosion and is undergoing medical treatment.

"From the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Hennadii was a reliable shoulder for me, completely devoting his life to the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the fight against Russian aggression," Zaluzhnyi said in a public message.

The officer is survived by his wife and four children.