A top aide to Ukraine’s army commander was killed in Kyiv by an explosive that went off as he returned home with a birthday present on Monday.
“An unknown explosive device went off in one of the birthday gifts. From the beginning of [Russia’s] full-scale invasion, [Major Hennadiy Chastyakov] was a reliable shoulder for me, completely devoting his life to the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the fight against Russian aggression,” said Valeriy Zaluzhnyy, the commander in chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, in a statement.
Ukraine national police confirmed that a 39-year-old Ukrainian serviceman died in a residential complex on the outskirts of the capital from a grenade detonation. His 13-year-old son was seriously injured, they said, adding they have opened an investigation into the careless handling of ammunition. Police have not identified a suspect.
The reasons and circumstances around Chastyakov’s death will be established during the pre-trial investigation, Zaluzhnyy said.
Zaluzhny said his aide had been married with four children. According to his wife, Chastykov brought home a bag containing a bottle of alcohol and glasses in the shape of grenades that had been gifted to him, Ukrainian news website Ukrainska Pravda reported, citing law enforcement sources. An explosion occurred as he opened the package, Ukrainska Pravda said.
