Born on July 31, 1973 in Kharkiv. After graduating from secondary school No. 44 in Kharkiv, he studied at vocational school No. 18, where he received the profession of an electric and gas welder.
His work is connected with the city's enterprises, where he worked by profession. He took an active part in installing the fence around the Kharkiv Zoo during its large-scale reconstruction.
In 2019, due to family circumstances, he was forced to move to the city of Kupyansk, where he lived and worked until 2024. Due to constant shelling, which led to a deterioration in the security situation, a mandatory evacuation was carried out in the city of Kupyansk in 2024, and therefore Serhiy was forced to move to the city of Chuguiv and lived there for over a year. While living in the city of Chuguiv, he worked in a private company and repaired generators for the military.
In October 2025, Serhiy Bocharnikov was called up for mobilization by the Chuguiv RTCC and SP and sent to serve in the 425th separate assault regiment "Skelya". He served as a rifleman in the 2nd infantry detachment of the 2nd infantry platoon of the 2nd infantry company of the 2nd infantry battalion. In December 2025, the regiment was actively operating in the Pokrovsk direction (Donetsk region), conducting assaults and clearing operations, in particular, in the city of Pokrovsk, and liberated the "Yuvileyny" residential area in Kupyansk (Kharkiv region), refuting enemy fakes and displaying the Ukrainian flag.
Circumstances of death:
The unit where Serhiy Bocharnikov served in the military took part in the battles in the Kupyansk direction (Kharkiv region) in mid-December 2025 during the Ukrainian counterattack, where they successfully destroyed the enemy in the area of the Yuvileyny residential area, thereby contributing to the interception of the tactical initiative. During one of these assaults, Serhiy did not return from the mission. Serhiy did not get in touch with his relatives. His relatives called, wanting to know "Why...?" and received an answer for more than 10 days: "There is no communication where he is." The regiment considered him missing. On December 30, 2025, the Chuguiv RTCC and SP officially notified (Notification No. 390) Serhiy's relatives that he was considered missing.
Soon, on January 5, 2026, the relatives learned that Serhiy's body was in the Chuguiv branch of the Kharkiv Regional Bureau of Forensic Medical Examination. On January 6, 2026, the relatives received an official Notification of the Joint Investigation Unit No. 759 of the Chuguiv RTCC and about the death of Serhiy Bocharnikov on December 17, 2025 near the settlement of Kupyansk.
On January 9, 2026, Sergey Bocharnikov was buried in the city of Kharkiv, at cemetery No. 18, on the Alley of Glory.
Serhiy is survived by his older sister, a son born in 1995, and a niece.