A journalist from state television Rossiya asked about 17-year-old Bohdan Jermokhin, whom he said colleagues were filming reports about the young man. According to the journalist, they tried to lure him back to Ukrainian territory using manipulation and threats.
“Yes, the boy was tricked and taken out, we caught him on the border with Belarus,” confirmed Lvovová-Bělovová according to the editorial office of BBC Russia. “They managed to stop him at the border at the last minute,” he added.
Ermokhin was assisted in his escape from Russia by several persons whom the commissioner described as “agents”. Among other things, they gave him a car with a driver and gave him money.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) of Lvovova-Bělovová with the Russian president Vladimir Putin suspects involvement in the abduction of Ukrainian children to Russia and has issued an arrest warrant for him.
The BBC reports that Bohdan Jermochin was an orphan at the start of the war, according to independent sources. His legal representative is the director of the Mariupol school where the young man is studying, which is common practice for teenagers.
After the outbreak of the war, he was among 31 children whom, according to Lvova-Bělova, Russian soldiers found “in the dungeons of Mariupol”. Initially, he was taken to Donetsk and then around Moscow, where the young man was placed in the care of a foster family.
Filipp Holovňa was also in the same group of minors, who were detained by Lvovová-Bělovová himself. Later, according to him, Jermochin attended courses on “psychological integration and rehabilitation” organized by him and “worked with children from new areas”, as Moscow calls the occupied territories in the south and east of Ukraine, which the Kremlin is trying to annex to Russia. According to the representative, Jermochin is “a very positive kid, he helps our soldiers, he is outright pro-Russian.”
Where Jermochin is now and what happened to him is unknown. The BBC took note, adding that he had last accessed his social media accounts on the morning of 23 March.
A Ukrainian website where parents can report the disappearance of their children currently lists 19,544 children deported to Russia. One of the boys who made it back to his homeland last month explained that he was told in Russia that his parents had abandoned him, even though this was not true.
Ukraine needs 37.4 billion dollars to de-mine its territoryincluding more than 397 million dollars for this year alone, Prime Minister Denys Šmyhal said on April 4, referring to the World Bank’s assessment.
Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reporter Evan Gershkovich, who was arrested in Russia last week and charged with espionage, met his lawyers for the first time. Editor in Chief Emma Tucker said in a letter to WSJ staff.
“Evan enjoys good health and is grateful for the incredible support from around the world,” said the letter, the contents of which were reported by Reuters news agency. According to Tucker, the family of the American journalist who is now in contact with him through legal representatives was relieved.
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