Communities in Russia are facing an influx of criminals who have used the Ukraine war as a get out of jail card and will at some point be on their way home after a specified stint at the front or due to injury.
Last year, Russia registered 617,301 violent crimes, according to its Ministry of Interior, the highest number since 2014. 2023 was not much better, with 589,000 – over 150,000 more than in 2017, reports the Washington Post.
Data from the Russian prison service and Ukraine's intelligence services suggest that Russia has recruited 120,000-180,000 convicts to fight in Ukraine since 2022.
While Ukraine also recruits convicts into its army, it prohibits entry to multiple murderers, unlike Russia where any crime at all will be pardoned in return for active service.
Dmitri Malyshev, for example, returned home to the village of Rakhina, near Volgograd after suffering a head injury.
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