“Important Stories” told about a Russian contractor who left for the United States before the invasion

The Important Stories publication spoke with Andrey Lavrentiev from the Amur Region. He served as an ensign in the Russian army, and before the invasion of Ukraine, he left the unit and went to America, he was put on the wanted list. According to Lavrentiev, the army was completely unprepared for war.

Now Lavrentiev is 41 years old, he has served under the contract several times, alternating work as a security guard and military service. The last time he signed a contract in 2017. First he served in the military police, and then transferred to the 38th Guards Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade.

Lavrentiev told the publication that the military equipment in his unit was in a deplorable state, batteries, starters and fuel pumps were stolen from trucks. Fuel was sold to local residents and written off through fake reports. “The Russian army is built on photo reports and the sale of diesel fuel,” says the former ensign. According to him, in the fall of 2021, equipment was sent to Belarus from the Far East, which "never went to the landfills" and "rooted into the ground with wheels."

Lavrentiev had previously avoided business trips to hot spots and also tried to refuse a trip to the border with Ukraine. He wrote a letter of resignation several times, but the authorities “lost” him every time. As a result, having written another report and without waiting for its consideration, at the end of December 2021, Lavrentiev left for America. A case was brought against him for unauthorized abandonment of the unit and put on the federal wanted list.

Lavrentiev is not going to return until the power changes in Russia. “I never voted for Putin. For me, this is a person who just wants to stay in power and promote his oligarchs, his wards. He doesn’t care about the common people,” he says.

Lavrentiev's colleagues, with whom he maintains contact, are also trying to quit the army due to war weariness and the indifference of commanders. Some return to Russia disabled. According to his friend, about 20% of the brigade remained.

Source: Important Stories