This is the horrifying moment a group of Russian soldiers gunned down a pair of defenceless Ukrainian civilians in Kyiv before leaving them to die in the street and looting their office.
CCTV footage captured five members of Putin’s forces as they approached The Camper Group – a mobile home showroom on the E40 highway west of Kyiv – where they accosted two men sitting in their office.
The men were hauled out into the street and frisked for weapons, before being asked for cigarettes.
After a brief exchange, the unsettling conversation appeared to conclude and the two civilians turned to walk away.
But moments later, two of the soldiers nonchalantly raised their rifles and blasted several shots into the Ukrainians’ turned backs, then sauntered off to plunder their office.
Two of the Russian soldiers nonchalantly raised their rifles and blasted several shots into the Ukrainians’ turned backs, then sauntered off to plunder their office
The civilians can be seen walking away down the street as a Russian soldier in the background prepares to shoot them in cold blood
The incident took place at the Camper Group – a mobile home showroom on the E40 highway west of Kyiv
One of the men, whose family chose not to name him according to CNN, seemingly died instantly in the cold-blooded attack on March 16.
But the other, 65-year-old security guard Leonid Plyats, lay on the ground until the Russians had left before painstakingly hobbling back to the office to call for help.
CCTV footage showed how Plyats dragged himself into the building, trousers soaked in blood, to contact the local territorial defence group.
But the blood loss was so severe that the old man died despite having received first aid from members of the civilian defence force.
The harrowing incident took place in the early days of the war, when Russian troops were still trying in vain to force their way into the Ukrainian capital.
After gunning down the unarmed civilians, Putin’s soldiers spilled into the showroom and were filmed emptying out valuables from drawers and desks as they poured themselves a drink and toasting to their success.
Minutes later, a small group of Ukrainian volunteers arrived on the scene and opened fire on the Russians, forcing them back into their vehicles.
The ragtag bunch of volunteers were outgunned, but the Russian contingent eventually fled the scene, leaving the would-be rescuers to rush to Plyats and administer first aid.
The aged guard had managed to tie a tourniquet around his leg, but he simply couldn’t hold on any longer and bled out on the floor of the building.
CCTV footage from the aftermath of the shooting showed streaks of bright red blood covering the white tiled floor after Plyats’ body was dragged out.
The office and the street where the cold-blooded murder of the Ukrainian civilians took place can be seen to the left of this image showing the Camper Group showroom
More than 10,000 war crimes have been registered for investigation by Iryna Venediktova’s office – and small number of them are ready to be submitted for trial (Ukraine’s prosecutor general Iryna Venediktova pictured left, speaking with German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock, right)
Vadim Shysimarin, a 21-year-old tank division soldier, will be the first Russian tried on Ukrainian soil for war crimes over his alleged murder of an elderly civilian, Venediktova said
A member of the local civilian defence group explained that the civilians staying at the showroom had been told to leave two days earlier as Russian troops advanced on the area.
But he said the pair refused to leave and wanted to continue showing up to work.
‘We hoped for the humanity of the Russian soldiers, but unfortunately they had none,’ the fighter said solemnly.
The Ukrainian prosecutor general’s office confirmed the incident was being investigated as yet another war crime committed by Russian forces on Ukrainian soil.
More than 10,000 war crimes have been registered for investigation by Iryna Venediktova’s office – and small number of them are ready to be submitted for trial.
Vadim Shysimarin, a 21-year-old tank division soldier, will be the first Russian tried on Ukrainian soil for war crimes over his alleged murder of an elderly civilian after his case was filed at a criminal court this week.
Shysimarin allegedly used an AK-74 assault rifle to gun down the unarmed 68-year-old Ukrainian man who was riding his bike in Sumy.
‘He is here [in Ukraine], we have him,’ said Venediktova, who later added that a total of 36 suspects have been lined up for prosecution so far.