On 6 January, an Italian man, Rocco, 53, who openly supports Russian President Vladimir Putin’s genocide, attempted to enter Ukraine. Due to the efforts of passenger Daria Melnychenko and widespread support from users on Threads, the pro-Putin supporter was denied entry at the Ukrainian border.
Daria said that many people in Italy hold pro-Russian views, but she has always tried to tell the truth about Russia’s war against Ukraine.
The Italian man who was turned away at the border was traveling to Ukraine for his own wedding. Along the way, however, he got into conflicts with other passengers and began openly praising Putin, Channel 24 reports.
“I am a real fascist”: aggression, insults, and Nazi slogans
Even before departure, Daria noticed the man because he was arguing with his fiancée. According to her, the couple may have boarded the bus while intoxicated.
“I complimented him because I saw he was wearing a vyshyvanka. He said it was a gift from his fiancée. They were traveling to Ukraine to get married,” Daria recalled.
During the first stop, Rocco approached her and began pushing his pro-Putin views, aggressively criticizing Ukraine and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
He claimed that Zelensky was a “drug addict,” called Ukrainians “cretins,” referred to himself as a “real fascist,” and shouted “Heil Hitler.”
When Daria told him that with such views, he should not be traveling to Ukraine, the Italian replied that there is no dictatorship in Italy and that he has the right to speak freely.
After that, the man began arguing with other passengers. Daria contacted the drivers and decided to inform the border guards. Other passengers supported her decision, Zakhid.Net writes.
Border guards’ decision and a three-year ban
“I understood that I was in my own country, and as a citizen of Ukraine, I should be protected here,” Daria said.
She admitted that she is proud of her actions, noting that her father has been defending Ukraine at the front since 2023.
The State Border Guard Service of Ukraine banned Rocco from entering the country for three years. The agency noted that the ban could be extended in the event of repeated violations, Kyiv 24 reports.
“In fact, we are dealing with a person who holds pro-Russian views and justifies Russian aggression. This is a violation of Ukrainian law," spokesperson Andrii Demchenko said.
The transport service company Al.Trans reported that it refused to transport Rocco back to Italy and advised other companies to refrain from cooperating with him.
At the border, people greeted Daria with words of gratitude. Volunteer Serhii Prytula called her personally, and Uzhhorod City Council deputy Vitalii Hlahola gifted her a T-shirt with her phrase from the Threads post.
“I’ll lie down, but it won’t enter Ukraine," she wrote hours before the supporter of Russian genocidal war was banned from Ukraine.
The scandal sparked a wave of memes and creative reactions on social media. Some businesses even launched promotions and discounts referencing the Rocco story.
At the same time, several soldiers urged the public not to focus excessively on such incidents, instead directing attention toward supporting Ukraine’s Defense Forces.
“Hundreds of thousands of ‘Roccos’ with weapons are killing our guys right now. Your attention is needed there, on the front line,” wrote an Azov fighter with the callsign Rasti.
Rasti himself survived Russian captivity. He described Russian tactics used in jail to break Ukrainian POWs. Hunger was the main tool of punishment there. The prisoners, most of whom spent their time behind bars, dreamed about bread, he recalled.
