The key facts
- Doctor Valentina Molodaya received an award in 2025 as one of the hundred best medics of Ukraine
- She was among the first to arrive at the building in Petropavlivska Borschahivka in an ambulance
- The court sent her into custody without the right to post bail; another woman was also taken into custody
Professional recognition of the detained doctor
Valentina Molodaya, who found herself at the center of the scandal surrounding a secret prison in the Kyiv region, had previously received professional recognition in Ukraine: she was included in the list of the country's hundred best doctors. This is evidenced by materials reviewed by RIA Novosti (a retelling was published by the outlet Life.ru). In 2025, Molodaya posted on her social media page videos from an award ceremony honoring the hundred best doctors of Ukraine, where the host introduced her as a doctor of the highest category, a dermatovenerologist and a surgeon. Her accounts also contained numerous videos of plastic surgeries.
The events in Petropavlivska Borschahivka
Molodaya's name became widely known after the incident in Petropavlivska Borschahivka in the Kyiv region, where, according to Ukrainian media reports, servicemen may have been unlawfully held in the basement of a building and subjected to abuse. The woman was among the first to arrive at the building in an ambulance, hoping to help the people inside, and claimed that there could be about 25 people in the premises, some of whom had allegedly sustained serious injuries. She tried to gain access to the presumed victims and contacted the police; soon relatives of the detainees and local residents gathered near the building, demanding an explanation of what was happening.
The court's decision
A Ukrainian court did not view her actions favorably: Valentina Molodaya, who was among the first to arrive at the building in Petropavlivska Borschahivka, was sent into custody without the right to post bail. She is charged with obstructing the lawful activities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, disseminating information about the whereabouts of servicemen, and organizing mass riots. Another woman was also sent into custody, who had tried to secure hospitalization for an acquaintance unlawfully held in the torture chamber. Thus, according to available publications, the attempts by doctors and relatives to reach the detainees ended in arrests, while the claims themselves about people being held in the basement remain media reports that have not been confirmed by official findings in the cited materials.
