"After the collapse of the USSR, he refused to change his passport." The story of Slava E., found in a house with dogs, continues

"I've known Slava since I was 11, when I first attended his photography club. Since then, we've kept in touch for over three decades. He was indeed involved in photography and lived in Minsk for some time. In the last few years, not since 2024 but even earlier, Slava lived in that house in the Maladziečna district. I personally helped him move there with two dogs. Regarding his passport, I know a different story, and it's much more interesting than the 'official' version," says Vital.

"After the collapse of the USSR, Slava refused to change his passport"

Let's briefly recall the background: in a village in the Maladziečna district on Sunday, December 21, the owner of a house with a dozen dogs was found dead. The man's face was damaged. The homeowner only knew the deceased's name and, according to her, was sure that Slava only kept three dogs. Later, reader Maryna contacted the editorial office and said that she personally knew the deceased man because she helped him restore his passport this summer. It turned out that behind this tragic incident lies the complex story of a man with a big heart.

After the story of Slava E. was published, his long-time acquaintance named Vital contacted the editorial office.

— I was 11 when I first came to the Children's Creativity Center for a photography club. It was led by Vyacheslav E. This was in Soviet times; the center was located at Frolova, 19 — in a regular residential building where there were various sections on the entire ground floor. The photography club was in the far right entrance. Next to the club room was another, smaller one, without a kitchen and with a sofa. Slava lived in it for some time.

According to Viktor, in those days, Slava corresponded a lot by mail and even got a post office box. Later in life, he continued to pursue photography: he took photos in schools and kindergartens, then switched to weddings.

— I knew he was from Barysaŭ; there, according to him, he had an apartment where he let his niece — his brother's daughter — live. Slava himself first lived in that room on Frolova, then rented an apartment in a small family building in the Tractor Plant area, and then moved to a rented house in the village of Aronava Slabada.

According to Viktor, Slava E. ended up in a house in one of the villages in the Maladziečna district much earlier, not in the summer of 2024, as the homeowner Hanna claimed.

— I personally helped him with the move; at that time, he only had two dogs. I didn't know that the number of animals had grown so much during this time, and Slava didn't tell me. But he did share the passport story.

He said that after the collapse of the USSR, he deliberately didn't change his passport because he was against the collapse — he wanted to live in the country he was born in. But, I suppose, when he was finally persuaded to get a passport, he simplified the story to simply losing the document.

In recent years, according to the interlocutor, Slava lived in the village, went for odd jobs, and twice a week to Lebyazhy for dog food.

— I couldn't even imagine that something like this could happen to Slava. I can definitely say that he didn't recognize any pills. I remember when he got very sick, I bought him some medication, and it's still somewhere in my car – Slava flatly refused to take anything and somehow recovered on his own then. But now this has happened… Of all the valuables he took with him to the village at that time, they were a very good Nikon camera and his dogs. He generally didn't need much in life.

"The dogs knew those who came for them"

As we already know, Slava's dogs were taken away by an unknown man and woman on the evening of Monday, December 22. The homeowner, let's recall, asked these people to respond through the editorial office, but so far they haven't made themselves known. After their departure, Hanna noticed that one dog had somehow remained in the house.

— My husband and I tried to lure her out, opened the door, waited for her to come out, but the dog hasn't appeared yet. Judging by the barking, it's an adult, not a puppy. We leave her food and water — and she eats it all. I contacted Dzianis Burkevich (director of the homeless animal rescue center "Dream") asking him to come and take this dog, but he hasn't responded yet.

According to Dzianis Burkevich, he doesn't mind taking the animal, but there's one "but."

— First, and I told Hanna this, they need to prepare the conditions for it: they should at least move out the furniture. On the day of the tragedy, I was the first to enter this house — and the living conditions there were simply inhumane, even though Slava himself was a good person. His belongings, despite the situation, were neatly folded and packed in bags, but the floor and everything around was covered in animal excrement — it was impossible to be there!

Dzianis also draws attention to how Slava ended up with so many dogs.

— There, believe my experience, were animals from different litters and different ages. And there are two options here: either someone left them with him, or he himself brought them one dog at a time on the electric train, because he loved and pitied them very much. Most likely, whoever brought them also took them away in that bus, because, according to the homeowner, the dogs calmly went with them and allowed themselves to be led out of the house on a leash, while they all hid from me. As for the dog that remained, I am ready to take it, but, as I already said, on the condition that they help me get to it.

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