Two Russian men convicted of ‘brutal murder’ avoid prison by signing military contracts

Two convicted murderers from Russia’s Zabaykalsky region have seen their sentences suspended after agreeing to go fight in Ukraine, according to a court decision reported by local news outlet Baikal People.

In a statement on Friday, the regional prosecutor’s office said that criminal proceedings against two of three men convicted for a 2023 murder had been suspended after they “traveled to the Special Military Operation zone”.

The killers, one of whom worked as a gravedigger for the city of Mogocha, murdered a mutual acquaintance in summer 2023 by dumping him in an unused grave, dousing him with gasoline, lighting him on fire, and burying him alive.

Prosecutors noted that the cause of death of the 41-year-old victim was asphyxiation from his airway being blocked with soil. Their investigation did not start until spring 2025, before which time the victim had been considered missing.

Only one of the men admitted partial guilt, while the two others pleaded not guilty. They were convicted of “murder committed with particular brutality” and sentenced to between 15 and 19.5 years in a maximum-security labour colony.

According to prosecutors, two of the men traveled to Ukraine after the guilty verdict was delivered, but the statement did not specify whether they were able to enlist independently or were offered a military contract to avoid prison.

Since 2024, Russia’s criminal code has allowed for a range of violent criminals, including murderers and rapists, to avoid their sentences by signing military contracts. Convicts are sent to so-called Storm V units, which receive minimal training, are deployed on the most dangerous parts of the frontline, and suffer high mortality rates.

An investigation by media outlet Verstka in April found that at least 13 people accused of murder, as well as 11 accused of causing bodily harm resulting in death, had signed contracts in exchange for early release or lighter sentencing since the criminal code was updated.

Earlier in May, Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN) Director Arkady Gostev admitted that a steep fall in Russia’s prison population since 2021 was partly due to recruitment efforts for the war in Ukraine.

The number of inmates in Russian penal colonies and pre-trial detention centres fell from 465,000 in late 2021 to 282,000 in 2026, a drop of nearly 40%.