A Ukrainian adult-content model who was gravely injured in Dubai is now talking about the circumstances around the incident that left her with broken bones and severe injuries.
In March, 20‑year‑old Ukrainian model Maria Kovalchuk was reported missing after attending a high-profile party at a hotel in Dubai.
She was later discovered in critical condition on the side of the road.
Highlights
- 20-year-old Ukrainian model Maria Kovalchuk spoke for the first time about the harrowing incident that left her severely injured on the side of the road in Dubai.
- Kovalchuk told Russian journalist Ksenia Sobchak that the men she had befriended turned on her and started behaving strangely.
- After initially escaping and hiding from the men, the next thing she remembers is being taken into an ambulance.
Now, in an interview with Russian presenter Ksenia Sobchak, Kovalchuk talks about what she remembers from that night.
Kovalchuk says she was tortured, but Dubai authorities deny wrongdoing
Image credits: marielouna__ / Instagram
Image credits: ae3marylu / Instagram
On March 19, Kovalchuk was discovered in a heap on the side of a Dubai road with a shattered spine and multiple fractures to her arms and legs.
After being rushed to the hospital, she fell into a coma for a period. Now, she is recovering from her injuries in Norway, accompanied by her mother.
That’s where she spoke to Sobchak and described what she believes really happened that night.
Image credits: Beware: Sobchak / YouTube
Initially, police in Dubai explained that Maria was injured after inadvertently entering a restricted construction site and falling from a significant height.
According to the NY Post, police in Dubai reported that it was not the result of foul play, while the Government of Dubai Media Office described the incident as an unfortunate accident while Maria was exploring the site alone.
But that’s not what Maria remembers.
Maria and her family reject the Dubai police’s explanation, saying she was attacked
Image credits: Beware: Sobchak / YouTube
Rather than a tragic accident, Maria and her family allege she was the victim of a brutal assault by a group of men—described as wealthy Russians and Ukrainian businessmen.
According to her interview with Russian journalist Ksenia Sobchak, Maria met a group of people, two men and two women, at her hotel in Dubai, who offered her help after she missed her flight to Thailand.
Image credits: Beware: Sobchak / YouTube
One of the guys promised to fly her there on his private jet, which supposedly belonged to his father.
Maria was invited to spend the night in their hotel room and attend a party.
Maria agreed and called to tell her mother what she was doing: “I even called my mom, (and) said that everything was fine, the guys were normal. I called in their presence, to be on the safe side.”
“They took all my belongings”: Maria explains how the situation went from bad to worse
Image credits: Beware: Sobchak / YouTube
But then things started getting weird.
Maria said the next day, the men in the group, who had been drinking “very strong alcohol,” started to tease her, getting “aggressive” and saying things like “'You belong to us. We'll do whatever we want.”
“I tried to take it as a joke,” Maria said, but it wasn’t funny at all. “After that, they took my personal belongings, which included my passport,” she said.
Image credits: Beware: Sobchak / YouTube
Maria said in the interview that the men seemed like they wanted to have intercourse with her, which she did not reciprocate.
As things escalated, Maria escaped the hotel room while on the balcony, running to hide at a nearby construction site.
“I ran away. I didn't see them anymore, but I knew they were coming,” said Maria. “I ran to the nearest building, just scared, and ran in, hid there. It was just an unfinished building.”
But they soon found her.
Image credits: Beware: Sobchak / YouTube
Maria says the next thing she remembers is being on the side of the road when paramedics came.
What exactly happened remains unclear.
Image credits: Beware: Sobchak / YouTube
Some media reports that she was thrown off a ledge at the construction site. “A passerby then discovered her and raised the alarm,” The Sun reports.
Maria pointed out that since the incident happened more than three months ago, all the CCTV footage has been deleted.
Officials launch human trafficking investigation, netizens wonder about so-called Porta-Potty parties
Image credits: Beware: Sobchak / YouTube
Following these revelations, Ukrainian authorities have initiated a human trafficking investigation.
“Family sources claim the funding came with an implicit condition not to publicly discredit Emirati authorities,” The Sun reports.
Image credits: Beware: Sobchak / YouTube
Many expats and people on social media have dismissed the police’s accident explanation, viewing it as a “PR-style cover‑up” to protect Dubai’s image.
While others have brought up the topic of so-called “Porta-Potty” parties.
The “parties” consist of extremely wealthy men paying women large sums of money to engage in disturbing behavior, including getting defecated on and bestiality.
Image credits: ae3marylu / Instagram
Some netizens are calling for justice in Maria's name, while others are suspicious about the details of her story
