Margarita, the child, was one of 48 children who went missing when Russian forces took control of Kherson. According to the Ukrainian government, they are among approximately 20,000 children abducted by Russian forces since the beginning of the full-scale invasion in 2022.
The child who had been removed from the care centre in Ukraine has been found in Russia.
Sergey Mironov, the 70-year-old leader of a Russian political party, is listed on the adoption record of a two-year-old girl who was adopted by the woman he is now married to in 2022. Records show the girl’s identity was changed in Russia. Mr. Sergey Mironov has not yet responded to requests for comment.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for President Vladimir Putin and his Commissioner for Children’s Rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, earlier this year for alleged illegal deportation of Ukrainian children to Russian-controlled territory with the intention of permanently removing them from their home country.
According to the Russian government, it does not deport Ukrainian children but rather evacuates them to keep them safe from the conflict. To find out what happened to Margarita and the other children, the BBC worked with Ukrainian human rights investigator Victoria Novikova. Ms Novikova has compiled a new evidence dossier for Ukraine’s prosecutor general’s office, which will forward it to the International Criminal Court.
Margarita‘s disappearance began in August 2022, when a woman dressed in a lilac gown arrived at Kherson’s Children’s Hospital, where the 10-month-old was being treated for bronchitis.
Margarita was the youngest resident of the local children’s home, which cared for children who were ill, had lost custody of them, or had died.
Margarita‘s mother had given up custody shortly after her birth, and the whereabouts of her father were unknown. Dr Nataliya Lyutikova, who oversaw infant care at the hospital, described her as a happy baby who enjoyed cuddling.
According to Dr. Lyutikova, the woman in lilac introduced herself as “the head of children’s affairs from Moscow.” Kherson, now under Ukrainian control, was in its sixth month of Russian occupation at the time. Dr. Lyutikova claims she received multiple phone calls from a Russian-appointed official in charge of the children’s home shortly after the woman left. According to the official, Margarita was immediately returned to her home. Margarita was only in the hospital for a week before being discharged. Staff at the children’s home were instructed to get her ready for a trip the following morning.
“We were all terrified,” Lyubov Sayko, a home nurse, said. It is described how Russian men, some wearing military-style camouflage pants and one carrying a briefcase, arrived to pick up the girl. “I felt like I was in a movie,” she commented. But this was just the start.
Seven weeks later, Igor Kastyukevich, a Russian parliamentarian dressed in military fatigues, arrived at the home and began coordinating the deportation of the remaining children, including Margarita’s half-brother Maxym.
“They took them from our hands and carried them away,” explained Ms Sayko. On Telegram, Mr Kastyukevich shared video footage of the children, dressed in outdoor clothing, being carried into buses and ambulances and driven away.
We emailed Sergey Mironov and Inna Varlamova to find out where Margarita was, but they have yet to respond. Almost all of the other children who were abducted are thought to be in Russian custody. At least 17 are believed to be in Crimea, according to Russian officials. Everyone has relatives in Ukraine, according to Victoria Novikova.
“The children will be safely transported to Crimea,” Mr Kastyukevich assured them as they were loaded. Russia seized Crimea from Ukraine in 2014. The event, according to Mr. Kastyukevich, was a humanitarian effort.
The BBC has been collaborating with Victoria Novikova to find Margarita and the other 47 children for the past five months. It is difficult to locate lost children in Russia, a country of more than 17 million square kilometres (6.6 million square miles).
