Police in Ukraine’s Kirovohrad Oblast have detained three residents of the village of Dibrivka suspected of unlawfully detaining, torturing, and raping a 20-year-old man over an extended period. The victim managed to escape and report the crimes to the police.
According to investigators, the young man had been held in conditions resembling slavery since July 2024. However, he states that he had been living and working at the property of an acquaintance since March 2023. A student at an agricultural college, he had come to a local farmer named Oleh to complete practical training as a tractor operator.
Instead of training, he was forced into hard labor, deprived of adequate food and hygiene, systematically beaten, and subjected to acts of a sexual nature, while being threatened with violence against his family.
The suspects — three local men aged 40, 39, and 25 — are facing charges of kidnapping, rape, and torture.
The victim is currently receiving medical care at a regional hospital under the supervision of doctors. The suspects face up to 10 years in prison if convicted.
Local residents accuse the police of inaction, claiming that the situation in Dibrivka had been known earlier, but law enforcement allegedly ignored complaints.
