A mobilized resident of Moscow was sentenced to 7,5 years in prison for a series of escapes from a military unit. The 30-year-old man, whose name has been changed to Oleg, repeatedly hid after mobilization, finding refuge with relatives and in various populated areas.

Oleg, who had previously worked as a welder and had experience of military service in the Air Defense Forces, was mobilized in September 2022 and went to the military registration and enlistment office without hesitation. After training in St. Petersburg, he was returned to his unit and then sent to the city of Valuyki in the Belgorod Region. At the beginning of his service, Oleg believed that the mobilized would be released after three months, as he was allegedly promised at the military registration and enlistment office. When this period passed and demobilization did not follow, he decided to escape.

The first escape was attempted shortly after returning from training. Oleg took a taxi home, where he hid in a rented apartment with his girlfriend. However, he was soon discovered and returned to the unit. Soon the guy tried to escape again, this time hiding in his home, but he was found again.

Another escape attempt occurred in January of the following year, but did not last long - his mother convinced him to return and Oleg gave in. However, within a month he escaped again, chaining the orderly to a radiator to give himself time to escape. He hid in one of the villages, where he was detained in May while planting cucumbers. The military police asked if he was Oleg, to which the man replied in the negative and tried to point to a neighboring house, but was identified.

Even after this incident, Oleg did not give up - in August, he made his last escape, taking advantage of the carelessness of a guard and climbing out of a window. However, he was found almost immediately: the taxi he was riding in was accidentally stopped for inspection by traffic police officers. Oleg had no documents, but his identity was quickly established through the wanted list.

On September 17, the military court issued a sentence: 7,5 years of imprisonment in a general regime penal colony. At the moment, Oleg plans to appeal this decision and is being held in a Moscow pretrial detention center.