Thread by @ChrisO_wiki

1/ Russian military recruiters are now offering criminal suspects and accused a deal to avoid a trial by going to fight in Ukraine. It's the latest example of how Russia is tackling manpower shortages in the ongoing war by targeting a wider pool of potential recruits. ⬇️

2/ The Russian newspaper Kommersant reports that the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the FSB, the Ministry of Emergency Situations, the Federal Customs Service and even bailiffs are involved in an effort to recruit for the army those suspected or accused of criminal offences.

3/ Physically healthy defendants in criminal cases aged 18 to 65 are promised a suspension and then the termination of the prosecution and the wiping of their criminal records when they have received a medal, the war is over, or they either die or are too injured to fight.

4/ Exceptions are made for those accused of terrorism, treason or espionage, as well as paedophiles. If the recruit had previously served in uniform, their former rank – including officer grades – may be restored at the discretion of the military.

5/ Most such recruits are likely to be used as expendable stormtroopers. If the recruit deserts, fails to comply with orders, or commits other military crimes, their suspended criminal case can be resumed along with fresh charges for the new military offences.

6/ The Investigative Committee of Russia (Sledkom) – roughly the equivalent of the FBI – had previously been responsible for recruiting those in the criminal justice system, after the Wagner Group's recruitment efforts were forbidden in January 2023.

7/ An increasingly broad range of law enforcement agencies has gradually become involved in military recruitment since then. As well as Sledkom, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the FSB, and other agencies have taken on recruitment of prisoners and suspects.

8/ Russia's prison population was a convenient target for recruitment efforts, as the mass death of convicts has had little political impact. However, so many convicts have died in action that the authorities clearly felt they needed to broaden the recruitment pool. /end

Source:
kommersant.ru/doc/6788289