A Russian sailor who was initially reported as being among 27 missing navy troops after the Moskva missile cruiser sunk near Ukrainian shores in April has been confirmed dead.
Dmitry Shkrebets, who has been demanding Russian authorities find his son who was serving aboard the vessel, said in a post on VKontakte on August 2 that he had received a death certificate for his 20-year-old son, Yegor Shkrebets.
The date of the death was listed as April 13, the day the Moscow missile cruiser sank. Since the ship went down, multiple reports have surfaced of relatives of those on board seeking information about their loved ones.
The ship's sinking was a significant blow to the Russian military in the weeks after it launched its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.
Ukrainian authorities and the Pentagon have said the ship was hit by a Ukrainian missile attack, while Russian officials have rejected such assertions, saying the vessel's sinking was caused by a fire on board that detonated ammunition.
Russia's Defense Ministry said at the time that one crew member died, 27 were missing, and almost 400 other crew members were evacuated to other ships of the Black Sea Fleet.
