Nine prisoners escape in Belgorod: Hunt for fugitives intensifies
Nine prisoners escaped from a training ground in the Korochansky area of the Belgorod region in Russia; they had signed contracts with the Ministry of Defence. Three have already been captured, and six are still being pursued. A police operation is ongoing in the region.
The police in Shebekino provided the information. Two of the escapees, Denis Mustyakov and Alexei Gryaziutin, were convicted of murder; three – Roman Ser, Alexander Ivanov, and Alexander Kasatkin – for causing serious bodily harm; another – Nikolai Bagrov – for unlawful imprisonment.
The remaining – Eduard Harutyunyan, Igor Bolonin, Pavel Migunov – for theft, fraud, and drug use, respectively.
Reward for assistance in capture
According to the police, six soldiers escaped from the training ground on July 26, with three more escaping the next day. "A reward of approximately $1,000 is offered for information leading to the location and arrest of the fugitives. The police assume that the prisoners are hiding in Belgorod or Shebekino," writes the local portal PePel.
As noted by The Moscow Times, representatives of the Russian Ministry of Defence began "travelling" to penal colonies in the spring of 2023 in search of volunteers to start the war with Ukraine in exchange for presidential pardons.
Previously, similar actions were carried out by the Wagner Group. Following this scheme, nearly 50,000 people ended up on the front lines, boasted the group's founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin, who died in a plane crash. "Of these, 32,000 returned home," he stated in mid-2023.
According to estimates by the Gulagu.net project, based on internal data from the Federal Penitentiary Service, over 100,000 prisoners had been sent to the front from colonies by the end of 2023. The Russian BBC service and Mediazona determined that by July 26, 2024, 12,200 prisoners had died in the war. These were confirmed and verified names.
Escaped from the unit. Russian revealed losses. He cried
Russian media also reported on the escape of Yevgeny Zarubin, a trainer for Storm-Z units. He recorded a video in which, in tears, he says that of the 46 people, 30 returned. These were people he had trained. "I apologize to those I did not save," he stated.
It is not known if these escapes are connected.
