The body of Ukrainian journalist Viktoria Roshchyna, who died in Russian captivity, was returned to Ukraine without several internal organs and was listed in official documents as an “unidentified man.”
This comes from the investigation Project Viktoria, published by Ukrainska Pravda in collaboration with Forbidden Stories, Ukrinform reports.
The investigation revealed that upon examination in Ukraine, it was discovered that several internal organs were missing, including the brain, eyeballs, and part of the larynx.
Roshchyna’s body, labeled as number 757, was delivered on February 14, 2025, alongside the bodies of fallen Ukrainian defenders. It was marked with four Cyrillic letters: “СПАС”.
Journalists noted that the body was smaller and lighter than the others. During an initial examination, forensic pathologists identified it as female. A subsequent investigation by the Prosecutor General’s Office confirmed a 99% DNA match with journalist Viktoria Roshchyna.
According to the investigative team, the body showed signs of an autopsy conducted in Russia. An international expert suggested that the missing organs could have been removed to obscure evidence of death by strangulation or suffocation.
Journalists found out that the abbreviation “СПАС” might indicate “official cause of death” according to the Russian side: “extensive damage to the coronary arteries”.
As reported, on April 24, Yuri Belousov, Head of the War Department of the Prosecutor General’s Office, announced that the cause of death of Ukrainian journalist Viktoria Roshchyna, who died in Russian captivity, could not be determined due to the condition of her body.
Her body was returned to Ukraine by the Russian side in February 2025.
Journalist Viktoria Roshchyna went missing in August 2023 during a trip to territories temporarily occupied by Russia. Human rights activists later revealed that she had been held in two of Russia’s most notorious prisons.
The news of Roshchyna’s death emerged on October 10, 2024, when her family received a letter from the Russian Ministry of Defense stating that she had died on September 19. At the time, she was listed for a prisoner exchange. Ukrainian law enforcement has classified the criminal proceedings surrounding her disappearance as a war crime combined with premeditated murder.
According to the Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR), Roshchyna was scheduled to be part of an upcoming prisoner exchange. However, on February 22, 2025, Bohdan Okhrimenko, head of the Secretariat of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, disclosed that after prolonged negotiations last autumn, Russia had expressed readiness to return Roshchyna but repeatedly postponed the date. It was later reported that she had died in captivity.
Andriy Yusov, Deputy Head of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, emphasized that Ukraine is making every effort to uncover the truth about the possible torture Roshchyna endured while in Russian captivity.
Source: Russians return body of journalist Roshchyna without some internal organs - investigation
