Mobilization in Russia for April 8-10, 2025 CIT Volunteer Summary
Army Recruitment and Military Service Advertising
Female inmates at Penal Colony No. 11 have been applying en masse to join the war effort, the Lyudi Baikala [People of Baikal] independent media outlet reported, citing sources familiar with the situation in the penal colony located in Bozoy, Irkutsk region. Authorities turned away about a third of the more than 60 volunteers, either due to health issues or because they had minor children. The rest completed a one-month military training program, which included basic nursing skills, and left for the front in December 2024.
The Ministry of Defense endorsed a motion to suspend the criminal proceedings against General Ivan Popov and to send him to war. Sources cited by the Kommersant daily newspaper claimed that he was expected to assume command of a Storm-Z unit. Meanwhile, prosecutors demanded that Popov be stripped of his rank and sentenced to a penal colony for six years. His attorney, Sergey Buynovsky, told the Ostorozhno, Novosti [Beware the News] Telegram channel that the court had not yet considered the motion to suspend proceedings. Earlier in court, Popov urged authorities to "return him to the ranks" and wrote to Vladimir Putin that he had always been his "warrior and Russia’s faithful soldier," again asking to rejoin the war effort. Authorities charged Popov—who previously led the 58th Combined Arms Army—with fraud on an especially large scale and service forgery, alleging that he stole 2,000 tons of metal products worth 130 million rubles [$1.51 million] intended for constructing fortifications on the Zaporizhzhia axis. Popov denies all charges.
A court in Udmurtia [Russia's constituent republic] has suspended the criminal case against local resident Anton Belkov, who is accused of murder for signing a contract to participate in the war. According to the prosecution, in December 2024, Belkov, while drinking alcohol, inflicted multiple stab wounds on an acquaintance, then dismembered the victim’s body and hid the remains.
In Volgograd, law enforcement officers carried out a large-scale raid across different parts of the city, during which several men who had recently obtained Russian citizenship were issued draft notices. The exact number of people who received notices is unknown, though reports say it was "not as many as in previous raids." A similar operation was conducted in the city of Balashikha, Moscow region, where law enforcement, together with civilian patrols, detained about 70 people, ten of whom were issued draft notices.
The Voyennye Advokaty [Military Lawyers] Telegram channel reminds readers that, according to a government resolution, until the Unified Military Register—the digital database of Russians subject to military service—is fully operational, what is being sent electronically are not the actual draft notices, but only notifications that a paper draft notice has been issued. Human rights advocates stress that, as of now, there are only two legal ways to receive a draft notice: in person with a signature, or by registered mail with delivery confirmation to the conscript’s address.
The human rights organization Shkola Prizyvnika [Conscript School] reports that IT specialists are being denied draft deferments under various pretexts, even after submitting the necessary documentation. Draft offices are taking advantage of this situation to issue draft notices and send individuals for medical evaluations.
Mobilized Soldiers, Contract Soldiers and Conscripts
Yevgeny Inkin, a former Ministry of Internal Affairs employee who was sentenced to 17 years in prison for the murder of two young women, has been reported killed in the war with Ukraine in August 2024. In 2002, in the Klyukvennaya Pad area of Russia's constituent Republic of Buryatia, Inkin and his accomplice Dmitry Istomin murdered 17-year-old Yevgenia Shevkunova and 18-year-old Ekaterina Pateyuk. However, they were not arrested until 2019, and they were not sentenced until 2023. In May 2024, it was reported that Inkin and Istomin had signed a contract with the MoD and were deployed to the war a year after their sentencing.
Konstantin Polezhaev, a former deputy governor of the Belgorod region who was convicted of bribery and later expressed a desire to join the war effort, has not been deployed to the frontline but joined the BARS (Special Combat Army Reserve) volunteer unit instead. According to sources from the Pepel [Ashes] Telegram channel, Polezhaev is listed in BARS only nominally and actually spends time at home with his family. It was revealed in October 2024 that the case against the official was suspended due to his deployment to the war.
Sentences, Legal Proceedings and Incidents
In the Moscow region, near the city of Odintsovo, on the territory of the 147th Artillery Regiment, part of the 127th Motorized Rifle Division, an explosion occurred on the evening of March 8. According to preliminary data, an unidentified object detonated in one of the barracks. As a result of the incident, six conscripts sustained shrapnel wounds and were hospitalized in moderate condition.
In Buryatia, a 28-year-old local resident who had previously fought in the war was arrested on charges of murdering a nightclub security guard. On March 27, he got into an argument with a bouncer at a bar and fatally stabbed him. The man was detained and sent to a pre-trial detention center.
In Saint Petersburg’s hospital, a 34-year-old war veteran was wounded after being shot by another soldier, a 43-year-old serviceman. The shooter was taken to a police station, where authorities seized a Bulldog signal revolver, along with 96 blank cartridges and 98 rubber bullets. According to Fontanka [pro-Russian media outlet of the Leningrad region], the conflict broke out while the two were drinking together.
The Barnaul Garrison Court sentenced soldier Andrey Sorokin to 11 years in a high-security penal colony on charges of inflicting grievous bodily harm. The serviceman had multiple prior convictions and likely went to war directly from a penal colony. Sorokin's new sentence includes his remaining unserved prison term.
A mobilized soldier has been sentenced to five years and two months in a penal colony for going AWOL. In the winter of 2024, he underwent a medical examination. He expected to be hospitalized, but was refused and assigned fitness category "B" (fit for military service with minor restrictions). Disagreeing with the doctors’ assessment, the serviceman decided not to return to duty. Seven months later, he voluntarily went to the police and reported that he had gone AWOL.
In the Ulyanovsk region, a court has sentenced local residents Sergey Kuznetsov, Samvel Mnatsakanyan and Tatul Mnatsakanyan to up to 13 years in a penal colony for extorting money by forcing their debtors to go to the war. The men were found guilty of extortion involving violence. According to investigators, they lent sums ranging from 10,000 rubles [$120] to 30,000 rubles [$350], and when borrowers were unable to repay the debt, they demanded between 150,000 rubles [$1,800] and 600,000 rubles [$6,970]. In some cases, the defendants demanded that the debtors go to the "special military operation" zone as volunteer fighters, "while taking their bank cards and managing their payments."
The Ministry of Internal Affairs has issued a wanted notice for six Nepali citizens. They are believed to have signed contracts with the Russia MoD but later deserted. In January last year, Nepal suspended the issuance of work permits for its citizens to travel to Russia and Ukraine after reports that 10 Nepalis had died while serving in the Russian army.
A woman from Miass was denied compensation from a convicted robber who had gone to war, as payments to participants in the "special military operation" are legally exempt from claims or confiscation.
A resident of Voronezh has been detained on suspicion of attempting to bomb a police station in Belgorod. According to the prosecution, 38-year-old Rodion Bagirov, acting on instructions from handlers with the Freedom of Russia Legion, traveled to Belgorod, retrieved a homemade explosive device from a stash, and planted it near a police station. However, law enforcement officers managed to defuse the bomb in time. Bagirov has been charged with treason, participation in a terrorist organization, attempted terrorist attack, and possession of explosive devices.
In the Vladimir region, a court sentenced a Moscow resident born in 2005 to 15 years in a maximum security penal colony. Additionally, three other Moscow residents have been sentenced to eight and seven years in a penal colony, respectively, for their alleged involvement in organizing arson attacks. The individuals were detained in December 2024. According to law enforcement, a 30-year-old Russian citizen residing in Ukraine, along with an acquaintance from Moscow, "agreed to carry out a series of vehicle arsons in the Vladimir region," as well as to gather information on energy, telecommunications, and railway infrastructure facilities in the region. A case has also been initiated against the Moscow resident who conspired with the organizer, accusing him of cooperating with a foreign state on a confidential basis.
Former soldier from Chita, Maksim Ivannikov, was sentenced to 15 years in a penal colony on charges of treason, incitement to extremism online, participation in the activities of a terrorist organization, and aiding terrorism. The exact nature of the accusations against him remains unknown, as his trial was held behind closed doors. Lyudi Baikala notes that he was detained in February 2024. At that time, the Zabaykalsky region Federal Security service (FSB) reported the detention of a Chita resident who, since October 2022, "was an administrator of a Telegram group" and, in the interests of Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU), "spread anti-Russian propaganda." The man was also accused of collecting and passing personal data of Russian soldiers and their families. Until 2019, Ivannikov performed contract-based military service.
Ukrainian Vadym Chaly was sentenced to 16 years in a maximum security penal colony on charges of attempting a terrorist attack and storing explosives. According to the prosecution, the 30-year-old Kyiv native Chaly was looking for work on the largest Russian classified advertisements website Avito, where he connected with representatives of Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU). After completing test assignments, he was promised 6,000 rubles [$70] for sending parcels containing 900 grams of explosives to three colonels of Russia’s MoD. None of the three parcels detonated.
In the city of Yekaterinburg, authorities have arrested another teenager who is considered part of a group that planned a terrorist attack in the city. The FSB claims he was operating alongside three peers who were detained in January. The young people allegedly intended to set off explosions in crowded places.
The Supreme Court has upheld a 22.5-year sentence for Aleksandr Dimitrenko, who was convicted on charges of treason, preparation for sabotage and illegal possession of explosives. On March 22, 2024, the court found Dimitrenko guilty of planning to blow up a railway station. While in custody, the man's eyesight has begun to deteriorate rapidly.
Russia and the United States have conducted another prisoner exchange, which took place in Abu Dhabi. Russia released Russian-American citizen Ksenia Karelina, who had been sentenced to 12 years in prison on treason charges for donating $51 to the Ukrainian foundation Razom for Ukraine, a contribution she made on the third day of the full-scale war. She was detained in February 2024 at the Yekaterinburg airport when she arrived to visit relatives. The United States, in turn, released Arthur Petrov, a German-Russian citizen arrested in Cyprus in 2023 at the request of the United States. He is accused of smuggling microelectronics to Russia that were subsequently used in Russian military vehicles in Ukraine.
Children and Educational System
The Institute for Educational Development of the Kirov region, with the support of the Ministry of Education, has opened an exhibition titled "Teachers of Heroes." It features portraits of educators whose students have joined the war against Ukraine.
In Yekaterinburg, at the Ural Federal University on April 16, the Immortal Regiment of Heroes of the "Special Military Operation" will take place. The evening will honor students and alumni of the university who lost their lives during the conflict.
In the Primorsky region, schoolchildren took part in the Day at the Frontline event to mark the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War. Activities included teaching children how to handle weapons, use gas masks, navigate obstacles, and learn about drone operations.
Longreads
The investigative project Systema has released a documentary about how Russian authorities first invented and then began sending convicts to fight in Ukraine.
The Sever.Realii [part of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty] online media outlet reported on the recruitment of people with intellectual disabilities to fight in the war.
Vazhnyye Istorii [IStories, independent Russian investigative media outlet] has published a report on how the authorities are trying to prevent soldiers from leaving in the event the war eventually ends.
The Vyorstka media outlet has published an interview with a school literature teacher discussing how school textbooks are altering the biographies of writers to serve the militarization of education.