Oleksandr Babych, the mayor of Hola Prystan in the Kherson region, is a civilian hostage of the Russians. He was abducted from his home on March 28, 2022. According to his former cellmates, the Russians have been holding him in occupied Crimea for more than two years without charging him. In September of last year, the Prosecutor General’s Office served a notice of suspicion on Russian serviceman Pylyp Kvartnik, who was involved in the abduction.
Pylyp Kvartnik is the head of the engineering and technical department of the Berkut riot police of the Russian Guard in Crimea and Sevastopol.
Olha Babych: I received the latest news on April 7, 2023. Nearly a year ago, Oleksandr passed me a note, not a letter, written on toilet paper through a released boy. This remains the sole update about him—his whereabouts, his condition—indicating his enduring love for Ukraine and his belief in his eventual return.
Until then, several individuals had testified to our law enforcement agencies and the SBU regarding his presence. However, following that pivotal moment on April 7 of the previous year, no further updates reached me.
We possess no verified information regarding Oleksandr’s location whatsoever. Despite numerous appeals to all conceivable state authorities, we’ve received no official response regarding his potential detention.
Our authorities remain silent. Their only reassurance: «Be patient; we will release everyone unconditionally and without any demands».
Olha Babych: My children and I departed the occupied area six days before Oleksandr’s arrest, on March 22nd. My husband phoned and urged me to pack quickly because there was a chance to escape. Since the initial days of the full-scale invasion, leaving our district and region had been exceedingly challenging. We couldn’t simply hop into a car and depart freely. Then, a corridor, as we termed it—the «corridor of life» to Mykolaiv—suddenly opened. I hastily packed my belongings and documents in just half an hour, hopped into the car, and didn’t even get to see my husband. Along the way, he caught up with us and embraced us. He didn’t know what to say; he just wanted us to flee. That was all.
He sensed they would come for him soon, especially after the previous day’s detention of the village head of Stara Zburyivka in our territorial community, along with his family. My husband fretted over our safety, fearing he might be coerced into cooperation due to the pressure on us.
Mykolaiv lay 70 kilometers away, and it took us three days to reach it. We set out on the 22nd and arrived in Mykolaiv on the morning of the 24th. When we contacted my husband, he sounded relieved. He was calm because he was not worried about himself; his primary concern was our safety.
He was detained the following morning. We never heard from him or saw him again. Nonetheless, he was certain that we were safe.
Olha Babych: Oleksandr served as acting mayor for a month. He traversed the territorial community, engaging with the village heads. He drove discreetly to avoid detection by the occupiers, presenting his driver’s license when necessary. Ordinary soldiers remained unaware of the village head or mayor’s identity.
During his visit to the family of the village council head, Viktor Maruniak, soldiers hinted that he was their next target. They were already aware of him.
Although he had the opportunity to leave with us, he couldn’t betray the people or abandon the community, which had lost all its authorities. People relied on him as a beacon of safety and hope.
Ihor Kotelyanets: We’ve heard that the occupiers tried to persuade many city leaders in the occupied territories to collaborate. Were there similar offers made to Oleksandr, and did he refuse them?
Olha Babych: Yes, it was his deliberate decision. Given the challenging circumstances surrounding our elections, I suspect a former MP played a role in his abduction and ongoing captivity. Detaining Babych was a matter of honor for those who supported him, seeking vengeance.
Anastasia Bagalika: Are we referring to the treacherous MP Oleksiy Kovalev, who was eliminated last year?
Olga Babych: Yes, on the first day of the full-scale war, he called while my husband was in a meeting, gleefully predicting that Oleksandr would endure many cold nights in the basement. He portrayed himself as a philanthropist striving to rescue people, yet it later emerged that he had been collaborating with the occupiers even before the invasion. Oleksandr Babych posed a significant threat to their interests.
Ihor Kotelyanets: Do you believe there are still individuals in the city who might have influenced the situation regarding Oleksandr?
Olha Babych: I’m aware of people directly implicated—civil servants and politicians—in the occupied territory. They belong to Kovalev’s faction. They played a role not only in my husband’s abduction but also in handing over all pro-Ukrainian individuals who hadn’t managed to flee.
Olha Babych: City council employees witnessed Oleksandr’s detention. The occupiers brought him to his workplace, conducted a search, and interrogated him there. Subsequently, they engaged in conversations with city council employees, attempting to coerce their cooperation.
Their argument was: «Why don’t you want to live like in the Soviet Union? We’re brothers; we can live well together; we don’t intend to harm you. It’s your boss who is a criminal.»
The employees observed him being handcuffed and surrendering his documents. The occupiers confiscated his house and car keys, then placed him in an armored bus and transported him to an undisclosed location.
Olha Babych: I don’t sense any struggle. While I can’t definitively say there isn’t any, no one informs me about such efforts. It appears to me that being included in an exchange is akin to «winning the jackpot.»
Although it’s commonly stated that civilians aren’t part of exchanges, everyone holds onto hope for such an opportunity because there isn’t any other way.
Oleksandr was recognized as a captive, and we received financial assistance for 2022-2023. These funds will be allocated for rehabilitation following his captivity.
As a reminder, on August 28, 2022, former MP and collaborator Oleksiy Kovalev was killed in Zaliznyi Port, Kherson region.
In times of war, the program «Free our relatives» tells the stories of people, cities, villages, and entire regions that have been captured by Russian invaders. We discuss the war crimes committed by the Kremlin and its troops against the Ukrainian people.
The program is hosted by Igor Kotelianets and Anastasia Bagalika.
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