Ukrainian troops from the 46th Airborne Brigade captured a former convict from Chelyabinsk during his first combat engagement.
According to RBC Ukraine, a video of the conversation was published on the channel of the 46th Separate Airborne Podilsky Brigade.
The 46-year-old man admitted in the footage that he had spent most of his life in prison, having served 26 out of his 46 years.
Hoping for a “clean slate” and freedom, he voluntarily signed a contract, but his actual combat experience turned out to be extremely brief.
The Russian system once again utilized a prisoner as a disposable resource: the man was sent to the front lines without adequate training. As a result, his “career” as an invader ended before it could begin—he was captured by Ukrainian paratroopers during his first combat sortie.
Ukrainian defenders stated, “His story is another example of how the Russian system casts individuals with criminal backgrounds into war, where this ‘mobilization’ becomes yet another turn in an unsuccessful life.”
Ukrainian forces captured a 46-year-old former convict from Chelyabinsk during his first combat operation, highlighting issues surrounding Russia's military mobilization of inmates.