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Reports of atrocities poured in from Bucha, Ukraine, after Russia withdrew from areas near Kiev.
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A new Reuters report identifies soldiers and military units who were in Bucha before the retreat.
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A soldier was identified because a love letter addressed to him was left in a civilian residence.
A Russian soldier in Bucha left behind an identification document during the atrocities: a handwritten love letter signed with an imprint of a red lipstick kiss.
Reuters reporters spent weeks in Ukraine’s Bucha after Russian troops completed their withdrawal from the areas around Kiev last month. The report, released Thursday, contains new details about what happened in Bucha based on interviews with nearly 100 residents, documents left by Russian troops and photo and video evidence.
A Bucha resident told the outlet that he discovered the letter after returning home to find much of his house destroyed. It was in his living room among a pile of documents, including Ukrainian identity documents belonging to civilians who had questioned or detained the Russian soldiers.
“It is good that you are close, close to my heart, but you are far away, you serve our motherland, protect us. I am proud of you!” said the letter.
The print of the kiss was visible in a photo of the letter published by Reuters.
The letter was signed by Oksana Rybakova and addressed to Aleksandr Logvinenko, a Russian soldier who was later identified as a paratrooper.
Reuters contacted Rybakova, located in Russia’s Pskov region, who said Logvinenko was her partner, though she later retracted the claim. Two people who knew the couple also confirmed their relationship with the outlet.
Reports of atrocities and possible war crimes poured out of Bucha after the Russian retreat, including the killing and rape of civilians and the discovery of mass graves, sparking an international investigation.
The outlet identified specific soldiers and military units that were in Bucha and linked some to specific acts of violence against unarmed civilians. Russia has rejected reports of atrocities in Bucha, claiming the accounts were fake.
Another Russian soldier was identified by the outlet after he sprayed his social media handle on the walls of a house near where the letter was found.
Read the original article on Business Insider
