The body of a nationalist Ukrainian activist and reporter who played a role in protests that led to the ouster of President Viktor Yanukovych has been found in a forest outside Kyiv a day after his abduction.
 
In a statement, the Svoboda (Freedom) nationalist party said the body of one of its members Vasyl Sergiyenko bore marks of torture and was hidden under rubbish in the woods near the village of Vygrayev, 120 kilometers southeast of the capital.
 
The statement said Sergiyenko's head was bashed in, his kneecaps mangled, and there were stab wounds near his heart and neck.
 
Sergiyenko helped organize the protests against Yanukovych in February and was a member of one of the nationalist opposition's self-defense groups that periodically clashed with the police.
 
The local prosecutor's office confirmed the discovery of the body.
 

Based on reporting by AFP and Interfax