Two weeks ago, an addition was introduced to the current law stating that one may not discredit the Russian army. Now you must also not speak ill of those who fight voluntarily, for example prisoners recruited by the Wagner Group.
– Now you must not say that they are murderers, rapists and pedophiles because then you can get up to 15 years in prison. But we see that the crimes are happening and that the prosecutors are cautious because they are afraid to prosecute war heroes, says Olga Romanova, head of Russia behind bars.
Returned home from the war
On Thursday, a 28-year-old man who fought for the Wagner Group in Ukraine was arrested on suspicion of murdering an 85-year-old woman in his home village.
The man was recruited into the war from a prison where he was serving a 14-year sentence after murdering an elderly woman in 2020.
After fighting in Ukraine for six months, he was pardoned and returned home where he kept all the inhabitants in fear. A local TV channel interviewed the villagers who had called a meeting to discuss how to deal with the man.
Hear one of the villagers tell about the Returner and watch him smash cars. The pictures were taken just a few days before the man was arrested on suspicion of murder.