Hackers claim they have uncovered the identity of the Russian aviation commander behind the bombing of Ukraine’s southern port city Mariupol – and tricked his wife into revealing sultry snaps of herself and other officers’ partners.
Ukrainian hacktivist group Cyber Resistance and volunteer organisation Inform Napalm declared that Colonel Sergei Atroshchenko – commander of the 980th Assault Aviation Regiment – ordered a pair of warplanes to drop two 500kg bombs on Mariupol’s theatre on March 16, 2022.
Hundreds of civilians were killed in the attack on the theatre, which was being used as an air raid shelter and had the word ‘CHILDREN’ emblazoned on the courtyard outside.
Having learned Atroshchenko’s personal details, the hacktivists then posed as an officer from his regiment and asked his wife Lilia to organise a ‘patriotic photoshoot’ of wives and girlfriends for their men on the frontlines.
On 16th March, 2023 – exactly one year to the day that her husband is said to have ordered the heinous bombing of the Mariupol theatre – she duly obliged.
Lilia providing the hacktivists with a stunning reel of images showing 12 wives posing in their husbands’ uniforms, giving the hackers all the information they needed to identify several more Russian commanders they believe are behind the attacks on Mariupol – along with a trove of NSFW pictures.
Colonel Sergei Atroshchenko, of Russia’s 960th Assault Aviation Regiment, is believed to have given the order to a pair of Russian warplanes to bomb Mariupol’s theatre on March 16, 2022
The hackers posted several intimate images that Lilia Atroshchenko had sent to her husband
Lilia sent the hackers dozens of images from a photoshoot of Russian commanders’ wives and girlfriends
Lilia organised for a group of wives and girlfriends to pose with their husbands’ uniforms, giving away their identities. She also sent various images of Russian planes, as well as NSFW images
The photoshoot organised by Lilia saw 12 different women dress up in their husbands’ uniforms, giving Ukrainian sleuths the opportunity to identify them
Hundreds were killed when Russian warplanes bombed the theatre in Mariupol
A view shows the building of a theatre destroyed in the course of Ukraine-Russia conflict in the southern port city of Mariupol
Inform Napalm revealed that Atroshchenko was born in the Ukrainian town of Ovruch, in the Zhytomyr region, before moving to Lipetsk in Russia and registering in Voronezh.
He later served in the military in occupied Crimea before moving to the southern Russian city of Primorsko-Akhtarsk, just three miles away from the airbase where his regiment is stationed.
Hackers also said the Ukrainian-born Atroshchenko, 42, personally gave orders for warplanes to launch attacks on other civilian targets, including Mariupol’s maternity hospital.
They released a torrent of the commander’s personal information including private contact details and salary, sensitive details such as lists of the pilots under his command and their performance evaluations, and various ‘theoretical and practical’ details of missions which they delivered to Ukraine’s intelligence services for analysis.
Just two days after the hackers received the images from Lilia, Atroshchenko’s regiment was awarded honours as part of an executive order signed by Russian president Vladimir Putin.
The regiment was elevated to the honorary title of ‘guards’ for their ‘mass heroism and valour, fortitude and courage in combat operations to protect the Fatherland’, according to the decree.
Inform Napalm claimed hackers had sent details they had obtained on Atroshchenko to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to contribute to the ongoing investigation into Russian war crimes in Ukraine.
It comes as the Biden administration announced it would offer support for the creation of a tribunal dedicated to uncovering and prosecuting war crimes.
Hackers also said the Ukrainian-born Atroshchenko, 42, personally gave orders for warplanes to launch attacks on other civilian targets, including Mariupol’s maternity hospital
Inform Napalm released images of Atroshchenko’s personal details, including his military registration document and his registration in the Russian city of Voronezh. Atroshchenko was born in Zhytomyr in Ukraine
The hackers accessed Atroshchenko’s personal accounts and learned the identities of his regiment and their families
The hackers were also able to find a series of images and videos of Russian warplanes, as well as sensitive documents, on Atroshchenko’s accounts
‘The United States supports the development of a special tribunal on the crime of aggression against Ukraine in the form of an internationalised court that is rooted in Ukraine’s judicial system, with international elements,’ the State Department said in comments emailed to reporters.
The officials said they envision a hybrid tribunal based on the Ukrainian justice system but with international components – similar to previous ad hoc war crimes courts set up for Cambodia, Chad, the Central African Republic and Bosnia – and likely based in The Hague, Netherlands.
‘This kind of model – an internationalised national court – will facilitate broader international support and demonstrate Ukraine’s leadership in ensuring accountability for the crime of aggression,’ the State Department said.
‘It also builds upon the example of other successful justice mechanisms.’
The Hague will be home to the International Centre for Prosecution of the Crime of Aggression, a Ukraine-focused investigations unit that is expected to be fully operational this summer. The centre’s offices and staff could be incorporated into whatever tribunal is eventually created, the U.S. officials said.
The Hague also hosts the ICC and the International Court of Justice. The ICC prosecutor issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and an aide earlier this month for the abductions of Ukrainian children.
But the U.S. is not a member of the ICC, which complicates its ability to support the court with evidence or other information that could be used in its prosecutions.
