Eight Russian draftees receive prison sentences for desertion

A garrison military court sentenced eight draftees from Russia’s Kaliningrad region to long-term imprisonment for desertion. They reportedly fled a camp in the Luhansk region of Ukraine where they had been stationed by the Russian army. According to Mediazona, they were found guilty of desertion and not fulfilling orders during their period of mobilization.

They had all been drafted into the Russian army in September 2022. They were sent to a camp in annexed “LNR” territory. When they were told that they would be sent to the frontline, they decided to flee. They took taxis and hitchicked until they reached Podolsk, a town in the Moscow region, where they went to the police and handed over their weapons.