The international delegation, headed by Ana Lucía Bueno, ICRC Public Health Coordinator, and Sujit Panda, Head of the Physical Rehabilitation…
Risking his life, a police officer and his colleagues carried out an extremely difficult special operation to bring their fallen comrade home one last time.
The heroic story was published by the National Police.
For over 19 years, “Veres” served in law enforcement; for the last 10 years he worked as a duty officer in the Organizational-Analytical Support and Rapid Response Department.
He was deployed to the ATO zone three times, serving in the Debaltseve direction and Bakhmut. When a rifle battalion was formed, he joined its ranks.
After combat training, in June 2025, the police major went to the front line. While at an intermediate point, “Veres” transported comrades to their positions and provided them with food and water.
On August 13, Serhii Movchun, a soldier of the Rivne rifle battalion, was killed by an enemy drone strike. Due to constant shelling, the police could not reach his body immediately.
“Only on the morning of August 23, when it started raining, five of our brothers led by ‘Bars’ reached the foot of the hill where the deceased lay. Because of the clay-like soil, it was difficult to climb and move”, — Veres recalls.
They placed the body on a cart and walked more than two kilometers to the designated point. Due to exhaustion, the operation was paused.
The next day, a rescue group led by Veres returned.
“Because of the heat and rain, the body had severely deteriorated. We had to place it in a special bag. Meanwhile, we ‘held the sky’. On the way back through the village, an enemy FPV drone spotted us about a kilometer before exiting the settlement”, — Veres says.
The fighters managed to hide in bushes and shot down the drone just meters above their heads. The debris fell on the cart — and the body bag caught fire…
“More drones appeared above us, so we ran into an abandoned homestead and hid in the basement, covering the entrance with a blanket. Then 11 explosions followed. When it quieted down, we moved toward the positions of the Kyiv KORD unit”, — the officer recalls.
Later, Veres and a comrade with the callsign “Vovchok” returned to recover the body. But they encountered an enemy drone and an antipersonnel projectile lying next to the body.
“On August 27, along with our EOD specialist ‘Shef,’ we continued the evacuation. The Safari unit and KORD monitored enemy activity and corrected our route. The trip took about an hour. ‘Shef’ neutralized the projectile, and we retrieved the body. About 150 meters before our positions, another enemy drone spotted us, but we were lucky — its battery was low, and it turned back”, — Veres says.
Despite all threats, the Rivne riflemen succeeded. On September 10, Serhii Movchun was met “on the shield” in his native village of Nenkovychi.
Recently, Veres returned home from the front, where his beloved wife Maria (also a police officer) and 15-year-old son Mykola eagerly awaited him. The boy decided to follow in his parents’ footsteps and is now studying at a military lyceum.
At the front, the fighter injured his knee. After surgery, he still uses crutches, but believes he will soon return to the front line.
