As reported by hromadske.
The SWEET.TV online cinema announced the return of funds to journalist Dmytro Khilyuk, which had been debited from his bank card during a prolonged captivity. The information was confirmed by the company’s press office, citing the relevant materials.
SWEET.TV expressed sincere condolences regarding this situation and assured that since the news, the journalist has remained in touch with them. They also confirmed that the service does not have access to subscribers’ personal data and does not collect information about occupation, place of residence, or other personal circumstances of users.
“The user personally selects the subscription plan and a convenient payment frequency. At any moment it can be easily canceled in the user’s account on the website or in the app. The charges are automatically processed by the system in accordance with the chosen tariff and frequency”
According to Khilyuk, after regaining access to his bank card he found that over a long period about 8,000 hryvnias had been debited. The journalist noted that the card was subsequently restored, but the amount in the account was significantly less than expected.
Dmytro Khilyuk gained public attention after being released from Russian captivity. As of the end of summer 2025, he was returned to Ukraine together with military personnel and civilians, including the former Kherson mayor Volodymyr Mykolaienko and journalist Marko Kaliush.
Timeline of events and context
On March 3, 2022, Russian occupiers abducted Khilyuk during events in the Kyiv region. The journalist was seized near his home in Kozarovychi near Kyiv, after which he remained in the occupied territories and was taken to Russia. Later he was transported to Correctional Colony No. 7 in the town of Pakino in Vladimir Oblast.
In 2024, the rights organization Reporters Without Borders reported a significant weight loss of the journalist during detention, citing the testimony of a Ukrainian serviceman who spent a year in Russian prisons together with Khilyuk.
The news of Dmitro’s release became public on August 24, 2025. He returned to Ukrainian soil as part of a group of military personnel and civilians, including the former Kherson mayor and other media workers.
You may be interested in these materials:
- Ukrainian journalist Dmytro Khilyuk was freed after over three years in Russian captivity during a prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine, bringing hope to families of detained Ukrainians.
- The story of Georgiy Gongadze, a prominent Ukrainian journalist kidnapped and murdered in 2000, remains a symbol of the fight for truth and media freedom in Ukraine.
