Journalist Konstantin Ryzhenko went missing in Kherson

Journalist and volunteer Konstantin Ryzhenko went missing in Kherson. 

An anonymous telegram channel related to Kherson law enforcement officers reported his disappearance at 8 am on March 31, as the regional representative of IMI reported.

And at 7:01 p.m. the Ryzhenko's telegram channel published a post, which was deferred and one that should have been published in case something happened to him.

"Hi there. If you are reading this text, so something has happened. This is a deferred message, the date of publication of which I constantly postpone for a day or two. If it was published, I could not postpone the date again. The signal, of course, is unpleasant, but do not panic right away. There can be several reasons. 1. I found myself in a situation where there is no connection for a long time, and it is not possible to get to the place where it is. 2. I could have lost my phone or broken it so that the enemy didn’t get it under such a threat, ”Ryzhenko wrote.

It is known that after the occupation of Kherson, Konstantin Ryzhenko was engaged in volunteer activity to provide food and medicine. He was constantly covering his activities on his own channel in a telegram. 

On March 12, Konstantin Ryzhenko reported on Radio Liberty that the Russian occupiers were also looking for him. "In the last few days, when the Special Rapid Deployment Force and the Rosguard (Russian Guards) came in the city, Rosguard representatives began to go from house to house and knock on the doors of activists, former SBU officers, and former servicemen. Journalists are threatened. There is information that one journalist was taken away, but this is unverified information. I was informed for several times that they looked for me especially and they were questioning about me. With a photo robot, for some reason. They went to the entrances to specific floors, knocked out specific doors and ransacked certain apartments, ”Kostiantyn Ryzhenko told Radio Svoboda at the time.

Renewal. On April 1, a telegram channel from the fake Kherson Rescue Committee reported that the Russians had set free Kherson journalist Konstantin Ryzhenko. At the same time, neither Ryzhenko himself nor his friends confirmed it.