Ukraine brigade commander held in custody in murder case

A Ukrainian court has ordered Stanislav Luchanov, commander of the French-trained Anne of Kyiv brigade, to be held in pre-trial detention for at least 60 days while he faces murder charges. Luchanov told reporters on Tuesday that he denies the allegations.

Ukrainian police say Luchanov is implicated in the kidnapping and murder of two brothers who disappeared from the Kyiv region in June after an altercation linked to noise complaints. A court in Rokytne, south of Kyiv, ordered the detention.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said ten people have been arrested in the case, including other members of the unit. Police say the brothers insulted a woman during the dispute, and that the woman's husband then recruited other soldiers to take revenge on them. Some Ukrainian media reported that the woman was Luchanov's wife, but police said only that her husband was a serving member of the military.

Luchanov was suspended after he left the unit without authorisation following the alleged murder.

The 155th Brigade is known as Anne of Kyiv, after a medieval Kyiv princess who married into the French royal family. French President Emmanuel Macron and Zelensky announced the unit's creation on the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings in 2024. Hundreds of its soldiers were partly trained in France.

The unit was meant to be a flagship force and a symbol of French support for Ukraine, but it has faced several scandals, including hundreds of reports of desertion, low morale and equipment shortages.

Interior Minister Igor Klymenko said the case had sparked wider discussion about the behaviour of some service members away from the front. He said it was unacceptable to resolve conflicts using gang-style methods.