Leonid Malik is a civilian from Donetsk who was kidnapped in the temporarily occupied Berdiansk in May 2024. The Russian occupying authorities accuse Malik of treason and handling radioactive substances. The basis for these accusations was his short-term work experience in Chernobyl, where the man disposed of transport. This information was published by "Glaсkom", citing a report by "Suspilne".
Currently, Leonid is being held in occupied Donetsk. The family hopes for a prisoner exchange, despite the possibility of his transfer to Crimea for sentencing.
"We were constantly in touch, always calling each other. And at one point I just realized that he hadn’t called for three days. I called relatives from the occupied territory, asked how they were doing, where my father was, what was happening to him, whether he was there. And as it turned out – he was missing," said the daughter of the missing person, Maria Malik.
Originally from Novotroitske in Donetsk Oblast, Leonid worked in Chernobyl, where he carried out radioactive transport disposal work. In 2012, he was forced to return to his hometown, and during the same period, the Russian invasion began here.
"In the morning I started calling him. At first, he answered that everything was fine. After an hour or two, the connection completely disappeared. And this went on for two months. Once he called, somewhere in early April. As I later learned, he just climbed onto the roof of a five-story building to catch a signal, call, and say that we were alive and everything was fine with us," Maria noted.
Then Leonid was allowed to contact relatives, Maria reported. The woman is convinced that her father's accusations are fabricated and hopes for his exchange.
Ukrainian civilian Leonid Malik was kidnapped in Berdiansk and accused of treason and handling radioactive substances. The family of Malik has great doubts about the truth of these accusations and hopes for an exchange to bring their loved one home.