Inside ‘Butchers of Bucha’, including proud dad, pro dancer, and soldier who celebrated his birthday with a massacre

TEN Russian soldiers have been identified as the "Butchers of Bucha" by Ukrainian authorities, including a professional dancer and a man who celebrated his birthday by carrying out a massacre.

The group, described as "war criminals" by Kyiv, are believed to be from the 64th Motor Rifle Brigade.

They were stationed in the Bucha while the alleged atrocities were being carried out by Russian troops.

Dubbed the "Despicable Ten", the men's faces and names were released by Ukraine's Ministry of Defence.

Among the 10 identified soldiers are Junior Sergeant Viacheslav Lavrentiev, a firefighter before the war, martial artist Private Grigoriy Naryshkin, and professional dancer Corporal Semen Maltsev.

A number of the group have reportedly continued to post on Facebook since the outbreak of war, including Private Vasiliy Kniazev, 24, who is said to have shared details of where the 64th Brigade was stationed in Ukraine.

Private Sergey Peskariov, 24, quit his job at a supermarket in November in anticipation of war with Ukraine.

Married Corporal Mikhail Kashin is said to have marked his birthday in Bucha by massacring civilians.

Meanwhile, Sergeant Nikita Akimov - who is said to have personally kidnapped and tortured Bucha civilians - has continued to post pictures of his young kids on Facebook.

In a statement, the Ukrainian MoD said: "Ten Russian butchers from the 64th Brigade have been identified and named [as] suspects responsible for committing the Bucha massacre.

"This unit [has] been awarded for its atrocities and returned to the battlefield. Justice for war criminals is inevitable."

Just 10 days ago, Vladimir Putin chose to honour the group blamed for the Bucha massacre, presenting the 64th Brigade with awards for their "heroism and bravery".

And the commander of the Bucha "butchers", Lt Col Azatbek Omurbekov, was last week promoted to the rank of Colonel.

It has been revealed that Omurbekov received a blessing from the Russian Orthodox Church in November.

Months later, the troops he commanded are alleged to have massacred and tortured hundreds of Ukrainian civilians.

The men's alleged identities were found after a joint investigation by the Prosecutor General's office in Ukraine and the news agency Slidstvo.

Speaking today, Ukraine's Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova said: "We will not stop until we bring each of them to justice."

All of the men named and pictured on Thursday are young - aged between 24 and 33 - and range in ranks from privates to sergeants to corporals.

Following the withdrawal from Bucha, they were moved to Belarus and then on to the western Russian border city of Belgorod.

The "Butchers of Bucha" are feared to have been redeployed to Ukraine, and are said to be fighting in the eastern Donbas region, where most of the Russian army is now concentrated.

More than 400 corpses, many of them brutally mutilated and tortured, were discovered in Bucha following the withdrawal of Russian troops.

Military analysts have claimed that Putin deliberately sent the soldiers back to the frontline so that they would "disappear" and will never be forced to testify over their alleged war crimes.

Among the atrocities reportedly uncovered by Ukrainian forces were "torture chambers" set up in basements where civilians were executed by Putin's soldiers.

Nine women and girls in Bucha became pregnant after being raped by Russian soldiers in the town.

It is believed that the "Despicable Ten" were supported in their massacres by the shadowy Wagner mercenaries.

This feared neo-Nazi fighting force known as Putin's private army has already been linked to a string of war crimes around the world.

Ukraine is said to be looking to defeat the 64th Brigade as a huge symbolic victory, similar to the sinking of the Moskva warship.

Russia continues to deny that any massacre took place in Bucha, and claims the images of mass graves and dead bodies were all faked.

"In the course of capturing the designated boundary, the enemy numbering up to a battalion was defeated, and more than 40 pieces of equipment destroyed," the pro-Putin newspaper Red Star reported.

"The Nationalist unit lost all combat capability and was no longer involved in combat operations.

"Within three weeks, under the leadership of Colonel Omurbekov, brigade units at the occupied line repelled more than 50 attacks by the enemy using tanks, infantry fighting vehicles and heavy artillery."

Ukrainian officials claim that the corpses of more than 1,000 civilians have been retrieved from around Kyiv and that French investigators are working with them to document alleged war crimes.

On Monday, it was revealed through forensic tests that many women were raped before being killed and dumped in mass graves.

A UN mission to Bucha has also documented "the unlawful killing, including by summary execution, of some 50 civilians there," according to the UN's Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

It comes as the Foreign Office confirmed a Brit fighter has been killed in Ukraine, the first reported UK casualty since the start of the conflict.

British armed forces veteran and dad Scott Sibley, 36, died in fighting, as his former squadron paid tribute to a man with a "commando spirit".

"We can confirm that a British national has been killed in Ukraine and are supporting their family," a Foreign, Development and Commonwealth Office spokesperson said.

The spokesperson also confirmed a second Brit fighter is missing in Ukraine, although they have not been officially named.

"We are aware of a British national who is missing in Ukraine and are supporting their family," they said. "We are urgently seeking further information."