Since the start of the war in Ukraine, the number of criminal cases against Russian military personnel initiated under articles on illegal arms trafficking has increased at least threefold, according to data from garrison courts across the country, which were analyzed by «Verstka»*. Makarov pistols, Kalashnikov rifles, foreign rifles, cartridges, grenades, and even grenade launchers are being taken from the front.
Before the war, courts considered between 24 to 41 cases a year, but in 2023-2024 this figure exceeded a hundred. About a quarter of all cases after the start of the war were considered in the border Kursk and Crimean garrison courts.
As one of the military personnel told the publication, selling weapons is not difficult because they are «written off in advance» — the stock is formed on days when nothing happens at the positions.
For example, servicemen of the 71st Motorized Rifle Division sold rifles for 15,000 rubles each. A contract soldier and holder of the «For Courage» medal from Crimea tried to sell a stolen AK-74 first for 50,000 rubles, and later reduced the price to 10,000.
In the Voronezh region, traffic police officers found 12 Kalashnikov rifles and five foreign rifles, six machine guns, a Dragunov sniper rifle, an under-barrel grenade launcher, two Glock pistols, as well as magazines and more than three thousand cartridges in the trunk of a 41-year-old serviceman of the «Akhmat-Russia» regiment, Bekhan Masaev.
Sometimes owners of illegal weapons are reported by colleagues, relatives, and «buyers». For example, in Vladikavkaz, a criminal case was initiated against Nikolai Kostin, a mobilized holder of the Zhukov medal, based on a complaint from his wife. In May 2023, the man found a Makarov pistol and cartridges for it at the front and brought them home during leave. His wife told the police about the man's «trophy»: during an argument, the husband threatened her with this pistol, after which the woman contacted the police.
Most military personnel — more than 60% of published sentences — are given suspended sentences or fines by the courts. In the overwhelming majority of cases, military personnel cooperate with the investigation, express remorse in court, express a desire to return to the front, and present receipts for charitable donations to organizations, including those helping the military in the «SVO».
* Recognized as a «foreign agent» in Russia.