The Prosecutor General's Office is investigating 107 cases related to Russia's war crimes against journalists, including the murder of 57 journalists, said Oleksiy Boniuk, chief of criminal law policy and investment protection of the Prosecutor General's Office, at the press conference "Will Russia be punished for its crimes against freedom of speech in Ukraine?" organized by the Institute of Mass Information at the Media Center Ukraine in Kyiv on November 4.

He said that even before Russia's full-scale invasion, the Prosecutor General's Office signed a memorandum with the Coalition of Civil Society Organizations, of which the Institute of Mass Information is a member, to investigate crimes against journalists. In 2022, a specialized department at the Office began the procedural management of investigations into Russian war crimes against journalists, Boniuk said.

The Prosecutor General's Office representative reported the following statistics regarding the investigation of Russian crimes against media professionals:

107 cases opened in total;
57* journalists murdered, eight of them foreign citizens;
45 journalists injured, 25 of them foreign citizens;
20 journalists unlawfully detained or deprived of liberty;
one person is in captivity;
one person is missing.

(*IMI note: the deaths of media professionals who enlisted in the army and were killed in action are not included in the Russian war crimes category.)

"These are official case material, and the cases are the basis of specific proceedings. It is extremely important to establish other details and investigate them," stressed Oleksiy Boniuk.

According to him, some cases are already being tried in court: four indictments have been issued against nine persons in the order of special proceedings (in absentia, — Ed.). Of these nine, three persons were sentenced: one to 9 years in prison, two to 12 years in prison.

"Of course, it is necessary to show society the results. For this purpose, we hold consultations and communications with civil society organizations defending the rights of journalists. We will shortly meet and go through all the crimes against journalists in detail, and we will separately touch on the war crimes category," said Oleksiy Boniuk.

According to the Institute of Mass Information, as of November 5, 2024, 92 media professionals died in Ukraine as a result of Russia's full-scale invasion (as combatants, civilian casualties, and while reporting).