On September 12, 2026, around noon, the Uman District Police Department of the Cherkasy Regional Police received a report about the discovery of a man's body in a tree belt on Kotsyubynskoho Street. The deceased turned out to be a 44-year-old British citizen of Jewish origin who had been living in London. As reported by RBC-Ukraine, citing a statement from the Cherkasy Regional Police, the man had entered Ukrainian territory on August 10 and arrived in Uman to take part in the celebration of Rosh Hashanah — the Jewish New Year, which is traditionally accompanied by a mass pilgrimage of Hasids to the grave of Rebbe Nachman.
Circumstances of the Discovery and the Course of the Investigation
The body was found in a tree belt opposite one of the residential buildings. Law enforcement officers conducted an initial examination and, according to their data, found no external signs of violent death on the body. A criminal case was opened under Part 1 of Article 115 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine — death by negligence. The investigation established the circle of people with whom the deceased had been in contact during his stay in Uman. According to acquaintances, he had no permanent residence, deliberately minimized contact with those around him, and spent most of his time alone. It is noted that the man had repeatedly come to this very tree belt to pray.
Who Was the Deceased
According to The Jerusalem Post, the deceased was a British Jew, the father of seven children. Journalists of the Israeli-British publication emphasized that the circumstances of his death remain unclear. It was precisely this statement that prompted a careful comparison of the versions, because, as will be shown below, in assessing the medical signs on the body of the deceased, the Ukrainian police and The Jerusalem Post give substantially differing characterizations.
Contradictory Data
The key discrepancy between the sources concerns the presence or absence of signs of violence on the body of the deceased. The Ukrainian police, in an official statement, explicitly state that "no external signs of violent death were found on the body." At the same time, The Jerusalem Post, citing its own sources, reports that signs of violence were found on the body, although it emphasizes that the circumstances of the death remain unclear. As of the publication of this article (September 15, 2026), the final results of the forensic medical examination, which could resolve this contradiction, have not been made public. Both versions are presented in the article in the form in which they were provided by the respective parties, and the final conclusion on the cause of death will be made exclusively on the basis of the expert report.
Context: The Pilgrimage to Uman in 2026
The death of the British citizen occurred against the backdrop of a massive influx of pilgrims to Uman. According to RBC-Ukraine, by early September 2026, approximately 17,000 Hasids had already arrived in Ukraine, despite the ongoing threat of Russian shelling. The main flow of pilgrims passes through border crossing points adjacent to Moldova, in particular through "Starkozachee." This year, the U.S. State Department recommended that its citizens refrain from traveling to Uman for the Rosh Hashanah pilgrimage. To ensure safety, traffic restrictions were introduced in the city, and in early September, Israeli police arrived in Uman to coordinate security measures during the celebration.
What Comes Next
Investigative actions are ongoing. The police of the Cherkasy region confirmed that they are establishing all the circumstances of what happened, including checking the version of a natural death and ruling out other scenarios. The final legal qualification of the incident will be given after the completion of the forensic medical examination. The family of the deceased has been notified, according to available data. The editorial team of XAB.info will continue to monitor the development of the situation and publish updates as official statements from law enforcement agencies become available.
