Ukrainian journalist Viktoria Roshchyna, who went missing in August 2023 in a temporarily occupied territory, was found dead and her body was returned to Ukraine as part of a body exchange at the end of February 2025. According to the results of a forensic examination in Ukraine, the body showed severe mutilations: the eyeballs, part of the trachea, and the brain were missing.
According to the international investigative organization Forbidden Stories, such anatomical alterations may have been intentional — to hide signs of strangulation. A bruise on the neck and a likely fracture of the hyoid bone raise particular suspicion, as these are typical signs of death by mechanical asphyxiation.
Moreover, Viktoria’s body had been recorded in Russian documents as “an unidentified male person” under number 757, which raises further questions about the circumstances of her death. The official Russian cause of death was listed as SUAS — “combined damage to heart arteries,” but experts consider this explanation insufficient given the numerous signs of violence.
Roshchyna was born on October 6, 1996, in Zaporizhzhia and began her journalism career at a young age, reporting on court cases, crimes, and life in occupied territories. In July 2023, she traveled to the Russian-occupied east of Ukraine via Russia, likely to report on the Kakhovka Dam disaster and the situation at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. She was last heard from on August 3. Her disappearance was publicly acknowledged in October 2023.
In April 2024, Viktoria’s father received a letter from Russian authorities stating that she had been held in detention. It was later revealed that she had been imprisoned in Colony No. 77 in Berdyansk and then transferred to Pretrial Detention Center No. 2 in Taganrog — both places frequently mentioned in testimonies of prisoner torture. According to Ukrainian intelligence, Roshchyna was on a list of prisoners for exchange but died during a transfer.
Human rights defenders reported that the journalist had suffered electric shocks, stab wounds, and was kept in complete isolation. On March 3, 2025, Slidstvo.Info published an investigation confirming the brutal treatment Roshchyna endured while in Russian captivity.
According to verified data from the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine, as of January 14, 2025, at least 31 civilian media workers remain in Russian captivity. Both journalists and civilians are subjected to torture, inhumane treatment, and extrajudicial executions.
A documentary film titled "Vika’s Last Assignment" has been produced about Viktoria Roshchyna’s disappearance and death. It tells the story of her journey, her journalistic mission, and her fight for truth in times of war.
Watch the documentary "Vika’s Last Assignment": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xhaNePtNfE