Journalists identified the Russian commander who tortured civilian Ukrainians in Chernihiv region

A 32-year-old Russian army commander from the Kemerovo oblast shot people in the hands during the occupation of Chernihiv region to extract confessions of cooperation with the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Prosecutor’s investigators learned about this, and the Slidstvo.Info journalists identified the occupier.

In January 2023, Ukrainian law enforcement officers notified the commander of the 7th Consolidated Rifle Company of the Russian Army, Armen Abgaryan, of suspicion of violating the laws and customs of war. Under his leadership, the Russian military occupied the Ukrainian villages of Andriivka and Pakul in the Chernihiv region.

The Russians kidnapped two local residents, kept them in the basement for a day, beat them and demanded information about Ukrainian defenders and civilians who had weapons. 

Armen Abgaryan went into the basement where the occupiers were holding the villagers and shot the two men five times in the limbs to force them to talk. The victims survived the torture, but suffered severe injuries. 

Also, under Abgaryan’s leadership, Russian occupiers broke into a private local farm with weapons and stole all valuables from there, threatening to shoot the owners. For such actions, Abgaryan faces imprisonment for a term of 8 to 12 years (Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

The Slidstvo.Info journalists identified the Russian occupier by his VKontakte and Odnoklassniki pages. Armen Abgaryan is 32 years old, married, and has a son. He lives with his family in the Russian city of Yurga (Kemerovo oblast), which is more than 4 thousand kilometers from the Chernihiv region.

Probably, the occupier has lived all his life in a provincial town in the Kemerovo oblast. His Putinist parents and his wife Ani Abgaryan and their son live here. On the Russian social network Odnoklassniki, Armen Abharyan has a joint profile with his wife, where he posts many photos.

The Russian soldier considers himself Armenian, as evidenced by his post on the social network: “…be proud to be Armenian”.

A screenshot of the post from the Russian military’s page

For Armen Abgaryan, military uniforms are a common thing, he posed in them in photographs ten years ago. In 2012, the occupier published a post on his page “Join the military, be a man”.

The occupier’s father, Simon Abgaryan, is a supporter of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin. This is evidenced by a post on his Odnoklassniki page, which the man made on the third day of the so-called special military operation.

A screenshot from the page of the occupier’s father, Simon Abgaryan. The photo shows Vladimir Putin sitting in an airplane

The elder Abgaryan actively uses social media. He likes to share family photos. Before his son went to kill Ukrainians, they spent a lot of time together, including family vacations.

The occupier’s father also constantly publishes photos of Armen Abgaryan with his wife on his page and even shows his creativity.

The collage “Love Song” made by the father of the Russian occupier Armen Abgaryan

On Odnoklassniki, the journalists found a symbolic photo of lovers embracing in front of a Russian tank.

Armen Abgaryan and his wife are photographed in front of a Russian tank

The Russian occupier is probably still alive, as his profile is active and he regularly logs in. It is currently unknown whether Armen Abgaryan is still fighting in Ukraine.

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