The indictment against a 22-year-old resident of Kyiv, who is suspected of raping an 11-year-old girl, has been officially sent to court. The announcement was made by the press service of the Kyiv City Prosecutor’s Office on Wednesday, April 22. Serhiy Khodakivskyi, the head of the Kyiv City Prosecutor’s Office and senior juvenile prosecutor on the case, confirmed that the investigation had gathered sufficient evidence to hold the perpetrator accountable for this heinous crime.
According to the case materials, the accused met the 11-year-old schoolgirl through a mobile dating application. Utilizing a tactic commonly known as online grooming, the man deliberately concealed his true identity and age. He falsely claimed to be a 15-year-old teenager, manipulating the young girl into believing she was communicating with a peer. Trusting that her new acquaintance posed no danger, the girl agreed to meet him in person for a walk in a local park.
During their meeting, the suspect, who was fully aware of the girl’s actual age, lured her to an abandoned building. It was in this isolated location that the man committed the sexual assault. Following the traumatic event, the schoolgirl bravely confided in her mother, who immediately reported the crime to law enforcement agencies. The police acted swiftly, identifying and detaining the suspect in November 2025. He has remained in custody while awaiting trial.
The actions of the accused have been classified under Part 4 of Article 152 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which specifically addresses the rape of a person under the age of fourteen. Under Ukrainian law, regardless of whether there was any perceived voluntary consent from the victim, such an act is treated as a grave criminal offense. The statutory penalty for this crime is severe, ranging from 10 to 15 years of imprisonment.
This tragic incident highlights the growing threat of online grooming and the critical importance of digital safety for minors. With the increasing use of social media and dating platforms among youth, predators often exploit these networks to build false trust with vulnerable children. Authorities strongly urge parents to monitor their children’s online activities, utilize parental control tools, and engage in open discussions about the potential dangers lurking on the internet.
Sadly, this is not an isolated incident of sexual violence against children in Ukraine. Law enforcement across the country continues to tackle similar horrific crimes. Recently, in the Vinnytsia region, a man was sentenced to 15 years in prison for the repeated rape of young girls and the production of child pornography. Additionally, in the Kyiv region, authorities detained a man who had been systematically raping his stepdaughters over the course of a year. These cases underscore the ongoing necessity for strict law enforcement and community vigilance to protect children from sexual predators.