Ukrainian law enforcement detained the chief organizer of an arms exhibition in the Bucha district of the Kyiv region that was hit by a Russian strike the previous day, Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko said.
The suspect has been charged under Article 367, Part 3 of the Ukrainian Criminal Code — official negligence resulting in loss of life — which carries a sentence of five to eight years in prison. Kravchenko said the man sustained minor injuries in the attack and is under guard at a medical facility. A court will soon decide on a preventive measure.
According to the investigation, a gunmakers' association organized the large-scale event without any coordination with military command, regional or district military administrations. The program included a demonstration of air defense systems. More than 300 people were invited to the open-air venue, where the nearest shelter was only 34 square meters in size and located about 100 meters away. Kravchenko noted that hundreds of people were in conditions of obvious safety risk from the start.
Invitations were sent nine days before the event, with the exact location and time disclosed 24 hours in advance. Investigators are examining whether these actions enabled Russia to prepare a targeted strike. Announcements of the exhibition were publicly available online.
Security forces also searched the association's office and the homes of several people involved in the organization. Authorities are reviewing how thoroughly the National Police, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), local authorities, and military command assessed risks and responded to the incident.
Russian forces launched a missile strike on the exhibition site on the afternoon of July 24. Ukraine's Air Force reported that two ballistic missiles were fired. Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat said the strike hit a private sports complex, not a military training ground, and that the facility had no connection to the Ukrainian army.
The attack killed 10 people and wounded about 100. Twenty-seven private homes and 44 cars were damaged. Among the dead were a Polish defense company employee, former Ukrainian security service officer Eduard Serenko, and Valentyna Savytska, head of the international cooperation center of the State Guard Department.
The exhibition was organized by the drone manufacturers' association Armada. The event, called "Krytychno Zakhyshcheno" ("Critically Protected"), was billed as a practical demonstration day focused on solutions for protecting critical infrastructure from aerial threats. Ukrainian presidential chief of staff Kyrylo Budanov said foreign delegations were present and stressed that organizers of such events during a full-scale war must bear personal responsibility for people.
Russia's Defense Ministry said the strike targeted a site where drones were being demonstrated, claiming that leading drone developers and manufacturers, as well as representatives of the Ukrainian military's unmanned systems command, were present.
Kravchenko emphasized that Russia bears responsibility for the strike itself, but the investigation is establishing circumstances that may have increased the number of victims and casualties.