Explosion of ammunition in the Bucha district: The SBU has opened an investigation under two charges, including negligence

This was reported by the SBU press service and Interior Minister Ivan Vygivsky.

The pretrial investigation is being conducted under two articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine:

• Article 437—crime of aggression;
• Article 425 – negligence in military service.

Investigators have determined that the explosions were caused by a Russian “Geran-4” drone striking the facility and the subsequent detonation of ammunition.

According to the Minister of Internal Affairs, police, together with investigators from the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the Office of the Prosecutor General, are investigating all the circumstances of the incident, as well as the key question: why the ammunition depot was located in the middle of a civilian residential area. So far, law enforcement officials have interviewed about 40 witnesses and victims, and the seized physical evidence has been sent for forensic analysis.

Casualties, Damage, and the Rescue Operation

As a result of the hostile strike and subsequent detonation, 37 people have been confirmed dead; the identities of many of them are still being determined. Four more people are considered missing, and the search for them continues.

The blast wave and fires damaged about 130 residential buildings on several streets, as well as a number of civilian facilities.

Overnight, units of the State Emergency Service and the police evacuated about 400 residents from the danger zone. In addition, more than 10 people were rescued from the basements of blocked-off buildings. Additional personnel and resources from four regions of Ukraine have been deployed to address the aftermath of the tragedy.

Assistance to Victims and Infrastructure Restoration

Within the community, the State Emergency Service and the National Police have set up operational headquarters and tents where people can receive medical and psychological assistance. Mobile units from the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ service centers and the State Migration Service are also on site to quickly replace lost documents.

According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the patrol police have already partially reopened the M-06 Kyiv–Zhytomyr highway, which had previously been closed to allow emergency services to operate.

As a reminder, on August 28, 37 people were killed as a result of an enemy drone strike and subsequent explosion at a facility in the village of Mila, Bucha District, including Taras Didych, the head of the Dmytrivka community, who had gone to the scene to help people. More than 40 others were injured.

August 30 was declared a Day of Mourning in the Kyiv region.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that the first strike during the Russian attack on the village of Mila hit a Defense Forces ammunition storage facility that was not supposed to be there.