They thought that it would be some sort of inspection when officials visited the penal colony in St. Petersburg. They instead were approached by men in uniforms, who offered them amnesty in exchange for fighting alongside the Russian army in Ukraine.
According to a woman whose boyfriend is serving a sentence at the prison, about a dozen left the prison over the next few days. Despite having years left on his sentence, her boyfriend "couldn't not think about it" even though he wasn't among the volunteers.
A large number of Russian soldiers are also reported to be refusing to fight and trying to leave the military.
“We’re seeing a huge outflow of people who want to leave the war zone — those who have been serving for a long time and those who have signed a contract just recently,” said Alexei Tabalov, a lawyer who runs the Conscript’s School legal aid group.
11 August 2022
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