According to the press service of the regional government, Kovtun himself decided to help the reconnaissance group, having learned that the military had been ambushed.
In battle, the senior lieutenant knocked out the equipment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and covered the reconnaissance group with his BMP, thus giving it the opportunity to evacuate.
The military left the fire, and Kovtun himself died from multiple shrapnel wounds.
“By the decree of the President of the Russian Federation, for the courage, bravery and selflessness shown in the performance of military duty, merit in strengthening the country's defense capability, the title of Hero of the Russian Federation was posthumously awarded to our heroic fellow countryman, Senior Lieutenant Andrey Kovtun,” the press service of the EAO government said in a statement.
Relatives of the deceased received awards for the title.
Russian leader Vladimir Putin previously awarded the title of Hero of Russia to the first deputy head of the Kherson administration, Alexei Katerinichev, who died as a result of shelling by the Ukrainian military.
Prior to this, a member of the Public Chamber of Russia, Alexander Malkevich, announced the death of Katerinichev as a result of a night strike by the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the center of Kherson.