Russian soldiers killing comrades amid army's rising internal crimes

Russian soldiers are committing numerous crimes, and their victims include not only Ukrainian civilians and soldiers but also their own comrades. An analysis by "Novaya Gazeta" journalists indicates that crimes occur on average every 2-3 days.

Journalists from "Novaya Gazeta" examined verdicts handed down in garrison courts. The impartiality and operation of Russian courts raise justified doubts, especially under wartime conditions. Despite reservations about the reliability of Russian investigators' actions and whether the guilty were actually punished, the fact remains that many crimes occur within the Russian army, in which soldiers are killed by their colleagues.

From January to October 2023, journalists found that 135 cases of murders committed in regions occupied by Russian soldiers were settled in courts. "It turns out that the Kremlin's army kills its soldiers every two to three days — due to mistakes or negligence," reports Onet. Importantly, these data are incomplete, missing information from garrison courts in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.

More crimes are committed in these areas than murders by war veterans throughout Russia. For instance, one Russian soldier, Maksim Moszkin, stabbed his comrade twice with a knife following a dispute over money for grocery shopping.

Sergei Shurkov, another Russian soldier, shot another soldier in the head three times over a debt of about £6,400.

Such crimes occur both in trenches along the front lines and in camps. Many murders are successfully covered up by reporting deaths as combat actions. While some cases do reach court, it's hard to determine what percentage of all incidents are reported.

An analysis of verdicts indicates that alcohol was involved in 83% of cases. In 76% of the murders, the perpetrators were drunk at the time. Some of the accused were confirmed to have alcoholism, drug addiction, and in some cases, mental and behavioral disorders, including PTSD.