Russian convict mercenary pardoned in Ukraine war commits murder again after returning home

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As criminals who participated as mercenaries in the war with Ukraine are being released one after another, residents in Russian regions are living in fear. Amid this, an incident occurred where a man pardoned for murder committed another murder immediately after returning to his hometown.

Russia's anti-government independent media outlet Mediazona and the US CNN reported, "On the 29th of last month (local time), the police in the small town of Noviburets in Kirov Oblast, Russia, arrested Ivan Rosomakin (28), a former Wagner Group mercenary, on murder charges."

The victim was an elderly woman living in the same village as Rosomakin, who was beaten and stabbed to death. Rosomakin confessed to the entire crime, but the motive for the murder is still unknown.

In February last year, the Wagner Group recruited prisoners to fight in the war with Ukraine under the condition that those who survived six months on the battlefield would be pardoned. The Wagner Group is a Russian private military company founded by Yevgeny Prigozhin, known as a close associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

However, despite the Russian government's claim that the pardons are granted "according to strict laws," fear of criminals being released has spread among local residents.

Mercenaries of the Wagner Group deployed in the Ukraine war [Image source=Yonhap News]

An official from a Russian human rights organization pointed out, "Many of the criminals who volunteered as mercenaries for the Wagner Group still had significant prison terms remaining. This means they committed very serious crimes," adding, "If no measures are taken against them, there could be a significant increase in crime."

Rosomakin was also serving a sentence for murder before joining the Wagner Group. He was sentenced to 14 years in 2020 for committing murder while intoxicated and for committing street robbery a month later. However, he applied to join the Wagner Group's prisoner mercenary recruitment, completed his service, was pardoned, and returned to his hometown. Upon returning, Rosomakin reportedly caused disturbances while intoxicated, carrying a weapon and breaking the windows of several cars without reason, which led to him being detained for five days. During this time, village residents even held a meeting to discuss measures against Rosomakin. The local police chief attending the meeting boldly declared, "Once Rosomakin is released from detention, we will put him on a train and send him away." However, the police took no action after his release, and he eventually committed another crime.

So far, it is known that more than 5,000 prisoners have been pardoned through the Wagner Group.