After Ukrainian journalist beaten & sexually assaulted in front of her young son on train, Kiev will place guards on services

Ukrainian Railways has put guards on long-distance trains, initially temporarily, after a female journalist was attacked and molested on a locomotive traveling from the capital Kiev to the coastal city of Mariupol.

Writing on his Telegram channel, Infrastructure Minister Vladislav Krikliy explained that "passenger safety is the number one priority" and, therefore, Ukrainian Railways "is starting a pilot project to protect passenger trains" with paramilitary guards. In the first stage of the pilot, 10 trains will be guarded.

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The decision to re-introduce security on the railway network was taken after journalist Anastasia Lugovaya was beaten and sexually assaulted in front of her young son.

According to the victim, at about 3am on July 31, she was woken up by a man beating her. Lugovaya began to scream, causing her son to also awaken. The accused then took Lugovaya to his compartment on the train, where she was molested.

The man, named Vitaly Rudzko, was detained by police upon arrival in Kiev, and is currently remanded in custody without bail.

Ukrainian Railways is a state-run monopoly controlling the vast majority of the country's railway transportation. Controlled by the Ministry of Infrastructure, the enterprise is one of Ukraine's most profitable companies, ranking fourth in 2017, behind Naftogaz (oil and gas), Energorynok (electricity), and UkrGasVydobuvannya (gas).

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