The Poltava Oblast National Police detained a man who allegedly shot a draft officer, stole his weapon, and escaped with another man overnight on Jan. 31.
The armed attack happened at a fuel station near Pyriatyn during the escort of conscripts to the 199th training center, the Ukraine's Ground Forces said on Feb. 1.
According to a Ground Forces statement, an unidentified man wearing a gray balaclava and military pants approached a serviceman of the Poltava draft office, threatening him with a hunting rifle and demanding that he hand over his weapon.
"When he refused, the man shot the soldier. The soldier died on the spot as a result of a serious injury," the statement said.
The attacker seized the soldier's assault rifle and fled with one of the mobilized conscripts after the attack.
Within a few hours of search operations, the police established the location of the attackers, according to a statement by the Poltava Oblast National Police.
The man who allegedly shot the soldier was detained, and investigators seized his weapon, the report said. It also specified the shooter was a resident of Poltava region born in 1984. His accomplice was a resident of Poltava born in 1988.
The prosecutor's office said it had launched a criminal investigation.
"The Ground Forces Command strongly condemns the armed attack on the serviceman of the Poltava Regional conscription office and demands a prompt investigation of this crime and severe punishment for the perpetrators," the Ground Forces wrote in their initial statement.
Ukraine has long struggled with manpower shortages on the front to compensate for losses and the need to rotate soldiers who have been on fighting since the start of the full-scale invasion.
Corrupt schemes uncovered throughout the full-scale invasion helping men avoid service have added to the difficulty of shoring up more soldiers for the war.
Abbey Fenbert
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