“They Couldn’t Break Him”: Ukrainian Warrior Escapes Russian Captivity Solo and Returns to Battle

Ukrainian warrior Oleksii spent four months in Russian captivity, endured brutal torture, escaped alone during Ukraine’s counteroffensive, returned to fight, and survived two more injuries.

He escaped captivity on his own, without an exchange. Before that, he had suffered broken ribs and fingers, and was forced to sing the Russian national anthem at gunpoint. He spent four months in basements, enduring interrogations and humiliation, until one day explosions rang out, the guards threw down the keys, and he found himself near a bridge at night, with an icy river behind him and enemy drones circling overhead.

And he still made it out. Alone.

Oleg Volodarskyy reveals.

This is the story of 41-year-old senior sergeant Oleksii, call sign “Czech.” What he endured was more terrifying than any injury.

For 12 years, Oleksii worked in Iraq for a private military company. He earned good money and raised his son, Yaroslav.

After Russia launched its full-scale invasion, he returned to Ukraine and joined the Defense Forces. He was given the call sign “Czech” because his fellow soldiers loved Czech beer.

On May 8, 2022, while carrying out a mission in the Izium area, their group came under mortar fire.

His comrade Roman was seriously wounded. Oleksii stayed with him and provided medical assistance. But the Russians spotted them. The enemy surrounded them and began throwing grenades.

Roman was shot dead on the spot. For the wounded Oleksii, four months of hell in captivity followed.

They broke his ribs, tore out his fingernails, and broke every finger on his hands. He was constantly interrogated and threatened with a “truth serum.” But he held on, driven by thoughts of his son.

One day, he asked to use the bathroom, but with his numb hands, which were constantly tied, he could not undo his belt.

The Russian muttered, “What, am I supposed to unbuckle a Ukrainian’s pants?” — and did it himself.

Later, they forced him to give a propaganda interview. He refused. He said, “I don’t want my son to see me as weak. I want him to know that his father is not a traitor.”

The enemy replied, “You answered like a man.” After that, the interrogations stopped.

But even in hell, he kept training. He saw a drug-addicted girl do 500 squats in exchange for a cigarette, and it inspired him. He started doing push-ups and squats.

And then came September 2022. The Ukrainian Armed Forces launched their counteroffensive.

On September 6, an explosion was so powerful that the men lying on the bunks were thrown to the floor. A small window was blown out by the shockwave.

The windows and bars in the neighboring cell were also blown out. The frightened occupiers fled so quickly that they left the cell keys behind.

The men from the neighboring cell freed them. There were 120–130 of them in total.

One of the men who had been held with them was from Kupiansk-Vuzlovyi. He knew all the routes and trails, so he became their guide.

Then came the night, a bridge in Kupiansk, and a river they had to swim across under enemy drones. And finally — their own people waiting on the right bank.

Eventually, Oleksii made it home. And he went back to fighting.

He suffered two more injuries — in the Zaporizhzhia region and near Chasiv Yar. But he is still serving.

The most precious thing in his life is his son, Yaroslav, a professional athlete.

The boy once told his father, “Dad, how can training ever be hard for me when you survived captivity?”

For Oleksii, that is the greatest reward.

This is what true strength looks like.