Kyiv confirms death of Viktoria Roshchyna, Ukrainian journalist held in Russian captivity since August 2023
Ukrainian journalist Viktoria Roshchyna has died in Russian captivity, the Ukrainian authorities confirmed on Thursday. She was 27.
Roshchyna was captured by Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) agents while reporting from Russian-occupied territory in August 2023.
According to Petro Yatsenko, the head of Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, the circumstances of Roshchyna’s death are still unclear. Earlier, Ukrainian lawmaker Yaroslav Yurchyshyn reported that the Russian authorities had informed the journalist’s family that she died while being transferred between prisons, though he later deleted the post.
Andriy Yusov, the spokesman for Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate, told the Ukrainian outlet Suspilne that Roshchyna was included on the list for an upcoming prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine. Yatsenko later confirmed this to Hromadske, adding, “The fact that she was transferred from Taganrog to Moscow was a stage of her preparation for release.”
Update: Later on Thursday, the Ukrainian news outlet Grati reported that Roshchyna’s father received a letter from the Russian Defense Ministry dated October 2, 2024, stating that the journalist died on September 19. It also said that her body will be handed over to the Ukrainian authorities “as part of an exchange of bodies of detained individuals.” The letter didn’t mention the circumstances or cause of her death.
Roshchyna’s arrest last year was her second time being captured by Russian forces. In March 2022, FSB agents arrested her in Russian-occupied territory and kept her in custody for 10 days. During her detention, the agency forced Roshchyna to record a video saying she had no complaints about her prison conditions and that Russian forces had “saved her life.” The second time she was arrested, nine months passed before the Russian authorities confirmed to Roshchyna’s family that she was in their custody.
Roshchyna worked as a freelance reporter for various outlets including Ukrainska Pravda, Radio Svoboda, and Hromadske, where she used to be on staff. She received the International Women’s Media Foundation’s Courage in Journalism Award in 2022.