Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
The forensic teams have to conduct a full sweep of the bodies before starting the identification process.
Returning the fallen from a conflict zone is always a somber, delicate task that requires deep respect and careful handling.
But when the battlefield follows the deceased into the examination room, the routine process transforms into a high-stakes operation.
This is the grim reality facing teams on the ground in Ukraine right now.
Danger in death
Forensic teams usually expect to deal with grief, trauma, and the slow work of identification.
However, teams processing returned individuals from the front lines are now encountering unexpected hazards left behind by the enemy.
In an interview with Ukrinform, Ukrainian police recently revealed a shocking development in the repatriation process. Authorities have repeatedly discovered live explosives, including unexploded grenades, hidden inside the remains of dead soldiers.
The terrifying discovery means that forensic experts cannot simply begin their post-mortem work right away. Every single repatriated body must now go through a strict safety sweep before anyone else can touch it.
Working very carefully
Taras Tarasenko, a top investigator with the National Police in the Kirovohrad region, explained that his team has to treat every arrival as a potential trap.
“We found explosive objects, grenades and other things, so we work as carefully as possible,” Tarasenko said, adding that they have seen many cases of explosives hidden inside bodies.
Beyond the immediate physical danger, the identification process itself is incredibly complicated. After bomb disposal teams clear the bodies, specialists search for personal items like phones, bank cards, or identification tags to figure out who the person was.
They also photograph distinctive clothing and tattoos. But the chaos of the war zone adds another layer of difficulty for the forensic team.
A tangled puzzle
Investigators frequently discover that the remains of several different individuals have been mixed together inside a single transfer. Law enforcement officers have to work alongside DNA experts to carefully separate the remains.
These difficult handovers happen after massive repatriation exchanges between the two warring nations. For instance, Ukraine recently took back 522 bodies that Russia identified as Ukrainian service members.
In that same June 18 operation, Ukraine handed 33 sets of remains back to the Russian side. Multiple state agencies, including the armed forces and emergency services, coordinate these massive swaps, but the true work only begins once the trucks arrive.
