At 04:15 on June 5, 2026, an explosion occurred at the New Mail sorting depot in Obolonsk. The parcel detonated directly on the conveyor belt — at the moment when workers were removing shipments during unloading. An eyewitness compared the blast to the impact of a kamikaze drone.
According to the company's press service, 58-year-old Ivan Zhariy was killed. Two others — Vadym Protsenko (41) and Denys Karachov (37) — were injured and are under medical supervision. The explosion caused a fire, which was quickly contained.
"The parcels were moving on the belt, a colleague was unloading them — the explosion happened at that moment."
New Mail employee, comment to Suspilne
Act of terror — officially
The Kyiv City Prosecutor's Office has opened a pre-trial investigation under Part 3 of Article 258 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine — a terrorist act that resulted in loss of life. The case is being handled by investigators from the Main Directorate of the Security Service of Ukraine in Kyiv and Kyiv Region. Explosive technicians from the Kyiv police, investigative and operational groups, and rescue workers from the State Emergency Service are working at the scene.
The sorting depot's operations have been temporarily suspended for the duration of the investigation. New Mail stated that it is conducting an internal review of safety procedures and providing assistance to the victim's family and injured employees.
Why this is more than just an industrial accident
The key detail: the explosion occurred during routine sorting — not during a special inspection of a suspicious shipment, but on a regular conveyor belt at 4 a.m. This means that the booby-trapped package passed through all preliminary stages of receipt and transportation. The question is not only who sent the bomb — but at which stage the logistics chain of the country's largest postal operator proved vulnerable.
- New Mail processes millions of shipments daily across Ukraine
- Most sorting happens at night — when staff is minimal
- Formal parcel inspection procedures exist, but do not provide for every package to be checked by an explosives expert
If the investigation determines that the explosive was placed in a parcel that came from a war zone or through Russia-controlled postal networks — the question will arise about a systematic review of security protocols for all private operators, not just New Mail. So far, the Security Service has not disclosed the parcel's route, leaving this question unanswered.
