Oleh Kotov was a citizen of Ukraine and a resident of the settlement of Kozacha Lopan, Kharkiv region. He was a pensioner and had served in the police before the full-scale invasion. On 23 April 2022, Russian military personnel detained Oleh at his home.
He was held without charge for more than four years. On 6 June 2026, he was released as part of a prisoner exchange.
At the end of July, he died in a Kyiv hospital from cancer.
Oleh Kotov told journalists that he had been tortured and subjected to inhumane treatment in captivity.
