Sergeant Dmytro Samofalov, call sign Protein, of the Azov Regiment, was killed on March 24, 2022, during the battle for Mariupol. He was 29 years old.
Dmytro was born in Bakhmut and had a passion for sports, especially football. After graduating from school, he completed his compulsory military service in Simferopol. He later worked at the Bakhmut Pre-Trial Detention Center and, from 2020, lived and worked in Kharkiv.
He had long dreamed of serving in the Azov Regiment, and in 2021 he accepted the opportunity to join its ranks, relocating to Mariupol. He knew his profession well and approached his service with great responsibility. His family remembers him as calm, kind, cheerful, and dependable—a man who never refused to help others.
In August 2021, Dmytro married Nataliia. They dreamed of having children, made plans for the future, and adored their French Bulldog, Oskar. The war cut their young life together short.
Dmytro was posthumously awarded the Order for Courage, Third Class.
He is survived by his wife, his parents, and his sister.
At 9:00 a.m., Ukraine observes the National Minute of Silence. The Donetsk Regional Military Administration, together with the Memorial Heroes Platform, honors the memory of the fallen defenders from Donetsk Region.