Former member of "Tornado" volunteer battalion Maksym Hlebov battalion has not cut off his own ear, as some initial reports stated. It was his former commander Ruslan Onyshchenko who actually did it, a newly-released CCTV footage shows, according to Hromadske.
Deputy Head of Lukyanivka detention center Oleksandr Savchenko has confirmed to reporters that the footage released by a Ukrainian journalist Alena Lunkova was shot with a CCTV camera.
Earlier, the battalion commander, Ruslan Onishchenko, claimed that Hlebov cut off his own ear, having decided to inflict self-harm due to "emotional distress after the court hearing."
A lawyer Volodymyr Yakimov had said that Hlebov cut off his ear in a protest move, allegedly over the bullying on the part of a detention center official.
On January 11, the Lukyanovka detention center saw a clash between detainees and guards. Later it was reported that the suspect who had earlier testified in court, cut off his ear.
Read alsoUkrainian lawmaker shoots villager in leg on New Year's eve claiming self-defense; alleged attacker disputes eventsPreviously, the staff of the Tornado unit refused to comply with the requirements of the inspector and did not allow searches to be conducted at the unit's location, with staff threatening the use weapons. On June 20, investigators and prosecutors started a search of the disbanded Tornado special unit’s base in Pryvolne.