PAVLOHRAD, Ukraine — Two Ukrainian police officers were killed and a third was critically wounded overnight when a targeted Russian drone strike hit the Bohdanivka community in the Pavlohrad district of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.
The victims, identified by the National Police as Police Captain OleksandrHryhorenko and Senior Police Lieutenant SerhiiShmatko, were hit in a "double-tap" attack while actively investigating an earlier strike in the area.
According to regional officials and police statements, the officers had deployed as part of an investigative and operational team to document damages from a prior strike. While they were carrying out their duties, an enemy unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) launched a second strike directly at their location.
Captain Hryhorenko died instantly at the scene. Lieutenant Shmatko sustained catastrophic injuries and was rushed to a nearby medical facility, where doctors fought to save his life before he succumbed to his wounds. A third law enforcement officer remains in serious condition under intensive hospital care. The explosion ignited an immediate fire, destroying the officers' vehicle and damaging surrounding local business premises.
The targeted attack on Pavlohrad was part of a larger wave of aggression across the Dnipropetrovsk region overnight. Regional Military Administration head OleksandrHanzha reported that Russian forces struck two separate districts in the oblast over ten times using a combination of attack drones and heavy artillery.
In the neighboring Nikopol district, heavy shelling damaged several civilian sites, including a secondary school, a local food warehouse, and a supermarket across Nikopol, Pokrovske, and Marhanets. National Police leadership expressed deep condolences to the families and colleagues of the officers, honoring their dedication to duty in the face of persistent danger.
"They were fulfilling their duty to document war crimes and protect their community when they were targeted," police representatives said in an official tribute.
Work by emergency response units and forensics experts continues across the affected communities to clear debris and record the damage from the overnight bombardment.
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