Vadim Shishimarin shot dead a civilian man in Ukraine.
His mother did not know that he had gone to war – or that there was even a war.
– I do not work with the internet and do not watch the news. I am not interested, they show all sorts of nonsense, she tells Meduza.
On February 28, 21-year-old Vadim Shishimarin and the Russian tank column rolled into northeastern Ukraine.
By then, the war had been going on for four days.
But they were surprised by the resistance of Ukrainian troops and forced to retreat. Shishimarin and four other soldiers stole a car on the run to catch up with the rest of the column. They drove through the village of Tjupachovka.
There they saw a 62-year-old man on a bicycle. Civilian and unarmed. One of the soldiers told Shishimarin to shoot. He picked up his Kalashnikov and shot the man from the window in the back seat.
– We drove up close to him. And I shot. I killed him, says Shishimarin in interrogation.
Mom: I knew nothing
The man collapsed and died on the spot.
At the same time, his mother was sitting at home in Irkutsk unaware that her son was in Ukraine. Not to mention that he just became a killer.
– He said that his phone would not work for a week. If someone were to tell me that he went to Ukraine, I would not believe it, the mother tells it independent news site Meduza.
The day after the assassination in Chupachovka, he and the other Russian soldiers were captured by Ukrainian forces.
Only days later, his mother learned that he was now a prisoner of war in the neighboring country. Then she did not even know that there was a war in Ukraine.
– I did not know that something like this was going on in Ukraine. I’m not on the internet and I’m not watching the news. It does not interest me, they show all sorts of nonsense, she says.
She describes her eldest son as a helpful and kind person who did nothing stupid. He had worked as a soldier for some years. According to the mother, she wanted her son to study at university instead.
No help from the Kremlin
He is now sitting in a glass cage in a court in Kyiv on suspicion of murder and war crimes. Russia has not wanted to know about the 21-year-old’s fall. The Kremlin calls the allegations “staged” and “unacceptable.”
– We still have no information about this case. And the possibility of providing assistance is also very limited due to the absence of our diplomatic mission [i Ukraina]. But I repeat once again, I have no information about this case, spokesman Dmitry Peskov has previously said according to CNN.
The 21-year-old’s mother wants him home, but tells Meduza that it probably will not happen.
“Forget it”, the answer has been from Ukraine.
She follows the trial from a distance. Vadim Shishimarin has confessed to the murder and said in interrogation that he was ordered to shoot. That he is remorseful and asks for forgiveness. She has a hard time believing that he could be capable of killing anyone, let alone intentionally.
– They probably send the young people first on the battlefield, then the officers. I do not know what happened there, who shot, who did not. He’s just been charged with this, she says.
Written letter to Putin
The mother has sent several letters to the Russian Ministry of Defense and appealed for help.
– I even wrote to Putin. They respond “We do everything we can. Wait”.
The 21-year-old now risks life imprisonment. He is the first to be prosecuted for crimes during the war. The eyes of the whole world are on him.
According to the Ukrainian public prosecutor, more than 11,000 war crimes have been documented during the war. About 40 people have been identified as suspects. More prosecutions and trials are to be expected.
– I feel sorry for our guys and for the Ukrainians. Children like mine are dying over there. Someone’s husband, someone’s son. I do not understand why someone needs to see so many people die, says Vadim Shishimarin’s mother.