Kostenko Vitaliy Nikolaevich (Kostenko Vitaliy Mikolayovich)

In 2024, in the Kursk region, during combat operations, Ukrainian citizens, servicemen of the 25th separate assault battalion of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, 46-year-old platoon commander Vitaliy Kostenko and 27-year-old shooter Petro Polinkevych, were taken prisoner by Russian servicemen. Criminal charges were brought against them for committing a terrorist act by a group of persons by prior conspiracy, resulting in significant damage. According to the Russian investigation, on December 25, 2024, Kostenko and Polinkevich, armed with AK-74 assault rifles with ammunition and hand grenades, together with other servicemen, illegally crossed the state border of the Russian Federation in the Kursk region. After that, they proceeded towards the village of Cherkasskaya Konopelka, where they held observation and fire positions, observed Russian servicemen, intimidated peaceful citizens, hindered the evacuation of the population, and disorganized the activities of government bodies." "On August 1, 2025, the 2nd Western Military District Court found the defendants guilty and sentenced Vitaly Kostenko to 17 years in prison and Petr Polinkevich to 16 years in prison, with the first 4 years to be served in prison and the remaining part in a strict regime penal colony. The verdict was not appealed and entered into legal force.