Yevhenii Ilchenko

Yevhenii Hennadiyovych Ilchenko is a lawyer from Melitopol who became a blogger after the Russian occupation of the city. He was born on May 12, 1975.

On May 3, 2022, Ilchenko launched the Telegram channel Mily Topol, which documented daily life in occupied Melitopol. The channel published videos from public places, information about local problems and strongly critical posts about residents cooperating with the Russian occupation administration.

Ilchenko was detained near his home on July 10, 2022. His family and local media reported that security forces searched his home and seized electronic equipment and documents.

Russian state media later aired a recorded “confession” in which Ilchenko was presented as admitting cooperation with Ukrainian security and military intelligence agencies and other alleged activities. However, no publicly available procedural document has established that he was formally charged with a specific Criminal Code offence.

Reporters Without Borders has collected testimony alleging that Ilchenko was tortured with electric shocks and subjected to other abuse after his detention. Witnesses also told RSF that he was forced to dig trenches and perform work connected with Russian military positions. These are documented witness allegations, not judicial findings.

For years his whereabouts were uncertain. In July 2026, RSF published new testimony from released Ukrainian detainees indicating that Ilchenko was alive and being held in Detention Centre No. 3 in Kizel, Perm region.

No criminal verdict against Ilchenko has been publicly identified.