Mobilization in Russia for Dec. 6-8, 2024 CIT Volunteer Summary
Army Recruitment and Military Service Advertising
Yevgeny Zamanov, a resident of Saint Petersburg, applied for a contract with the Ministry of Defense but later changed his mind. Despite this, someone signed the contract on his behalf and has been collecting his salary for the past six months. Zamanov decided to volunteer for the war in May, motivated by his girlfriend’s need for medical treatment funds. He submitted an application but later opted not to finalize the contract. In early December, he received a phone call from the draft board warning him to report voluntarily by Dec. 9 or be considered a deserter. Zamanov discovered that he was officially listed as a service member and that his personal account on the Ministry of Defense’s website showed that his salary payments had been redirected to a stranger's bank account. After he asked the draft office employee to identify who was taking the money, the official offered no explanation and stopped contacting him.
Courts in the Krasnodar region released more than 100 defendants to join the war from Oct. 28 to Nov. 28, 2024, under a new law allowing the suspension of criminal proceedings against anyone who signs a contract with the Ministry of Defense. This information comes from statistics published by the press service of the region's courts.
Mobilized Soldiers, Volunteer Fighters and Contract Soldiers
In 2022, Oleg Makarikhin, a 45-year-old male resident of the Novoazovsk town in the Russian-annexed part of the Donetsk region of Ukraine, was forcibly mobilized into the "DPR" People's Militia. Makarikhin attempted to contest the decision, citing the need to provide for his three minor daughters and his paralyzed father, but the military police responded that "everything would be resolved." Since then, Makarikhin has gone AWOL twice. In August 2022, he escaped for the first time, when he was informed of his father's death, left for the funeral and did not return. A year later, on Aug. 1, 2023, Makarikhin was caught, taken to the commandant's office and then transferred to the 1st Motorized Rifle Brigade in the town of Komsomolskoye [Donetsk region]. There he was held in an illegal basement prison with several other men and dogs. Later, Makarikhin was assigned to the 1st Battalion of the brigade, from which he managed to escape once more. Six months later, he was tracked down and beaten, resulting in broken ribs, and was put into a basement again, this time in a converted pigsty in the Komsomolskoye area. Makarikhin asserted that about 100 people were held there. His commander took him from there and sent him on a combat mission near the city of Horlivka in the Donetsk region, along with other soldiers who had not passed the military medical evaluation. During the mission, Makarikhin sustained injuries to his arm and side, but the command currently intends to redeploy him within the next few days, threatening to kill him if he refuses.
Former Wagner Group mercenaries and relatives of their deceased comrades from Russia’s constituent Republic of Tatarstan have recorded an appeal to Vladimir Putin, complaining about the lack of aid and support. They claim that, despite Putin's directive to equalize the status of all war participants, they cannot receive the military payments and benefits to which they are entitled. However, when they apply for benefits or a combat veteran certificate, they are told that Wagner Group mercenaries are not considered Defense Ministry soldiers or volunteer fighters, and are therefore ineligible for state assistance.
Sentences, Legal Proceedings and Incidents
In Vladimir, on Nov. 30, a local resident who "led a marginal lifestyle and signed a contract with the MoD" assaulted a 48-year-old man. Despite the grievous bodily harm caused to the victim's health, no criminal case was initiated.Â
A former mercenary of the Wagner Group who assaulted a female drinking companion with a hammer has been released from the courtroom. Yevgeny V., a 40-year-old resident of the town of Tayshet in the Irkutsk region, had previously been convicted of the murder of another drinking companion. He was recruited into the Wagner Group from a penal colony and received a pardon for his participation in the war. In May 2024, while drinking alcohol together, Yevgeny argued with his female companion and assaulted her with a hammer. The woman managed to escape, and the man was arrested for attempted murder. However, during the trial, the charges were reclassified as causing minor bodily harm to health, and the mercenary was sentenced to "time already served" and released.
The Rostov Regional Court has reviewed the case of Pavel Nikolin, another former Wagner Group member who injured two police officers. He was previously sentenced to six years and eleven months in a high security penal colony for endangering the life of a law enforcement officer, using violence against a representative of authority and illegal arms trafficking after opening fire with a machine gun on police officers in Novoshakhtinsk. During interrogation, Nikolin claimed he mistook the law enforcement officers for Ukrainian soldiers, not knowing that he had crossed into Russian territory. A year later, the court acquitted Nikolin of the charge of threatening to use violence against police officers. The charge of endangering their lives was downgraded, and Nikolin was recognized as having the right to rehabilitation. However, his sentence was increased to eight years in a penal colony. Nikolin had been recruited into the Wagner Group from a penal colony in 2022.
In Saint Petersburg, Dmitry Plamadyalu, a participant in the war against Ukraine, has been sentenced to nine years in a penal settlement for the deaths of two people in a traffic accident he caused while under the influence of alcohol and drugs. The court considered Plamadyalu's participation in the war as a mitigating factor. He announced his intention to return to the frontline.
The Investigative Committee of Russia opened a criminal case against officials of the "DPR," claiming that a detained group of these officials stole and sold metal structures from the Azovelektrostal plant in Mariupol, causing losses of more than 500 million rubles [$4.97 million]. The defendants include "DPR" Minister of Industry and Trade Vladimir Rushchak, his aide Sergey Goloshchapov and Maksim Soldatov, who heads the Trading House Vtormet departmental enterprise. They have been charged with looting "during armed conflict or combat operations by diverting the property of others for one's own benefit or for the benefit of others in particularly large quantities." The Kommersant daily newspaper notes that lawmakers introduced this criminal provision in the fall of 2022, when mobilization was underway.
A Russian doctor has been charged with implanting shrapnel into two "higher-ranking officials," according to Alexander Bastrykin, the head of Russia's Investigative Committee. The implanted shrapnel was meant to fake combat injuries. False documentation was created to allow the soldiers to claim around 12 million rubles [$119,300] in compensation, according to Bastrykin.
Children and Educational System
Students at a branch of Moscow State Pedagogical University in Stavropol have been forced to either make croutons or donate 100 rubles [$0.99] to support Russia's "special military operation" in Ukraine. A screenshot from a student chat was published by the anti-war Stavropol community OMV. The messages were allegedly written by a group leader who had received instructions from the university administration.
Miscellaneous
The Kursk authorities have classified a list of settlements whose residents are eligible for housing certificates. Vladimir Firsov, the Kursk human rights ombudsman, requested the list from regional government chair Aleksey Dedov but was denied access. Officials claimed the document was "for official use only." The ombudsman has filed a complaint with the prosecutor's office to investigate the legality of the authorities' actions.
Longreads
The Insider [independent Russian investigative media outlet] has produced a video about the roundups of conscripts. Meanwhile, TV Rain [independent Russian television channel] has reported on a riot police officer who returned from the war, killed his wife, and then re-signed a contract to return to the frontline.
Captured Ukrainian marine Vladislav Zadorin, who served on Snake Island, has told the Vot Tak [Like This] media outlet about his experiences in a Russian prison. He described abuse by guards and also mentioned the compassion of some Federal Penitentiary Service staff who refused to beat prisoners and secretly gave him candy.