Russian courts have recovered 4.8 million rubles from the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation in favor of the family of an 18-year-old conscript from the Chelyabinsk region, who committed suicide on March 29, 2019. An administrative investigation showed that the reason for the suicide was "a neuropsychological breakdown caused by physical and moral pressure in the form of beatings" from the senior lieutenant. Information about this was published by the head of the human rights group "Agora" Pavel Chikov in his Telegram channel. He did not provide the name of the deceased soldier.
On March 1, the Presnensky District Court of Moscow recovered 1.8 million rubles in compensation for non-pecuniary damage in favor of the conscript's father and sister. Before that, the Ussuriysk garrison military court exacted 3 million rubles from the Ministry of Defense in favor of the mother and two sisters of the serviceman.
In November 2018, an 18-year-old resident of the Chelyabinsk region was called up for military service, he was sent to an artillery brigade in the Primorsky Territory. In the spring of 2019, he faced humiliation from a platoon leader. According to the lawyer, the officer humiliated the recruit in the presence of colleagues, used violence and deprived him of rest at night. As a result, the man experienced overwork, psychophysical exhaustion and mental disorders. In March 2019, his body was found in a wooded area near the field camp.
In November 2019, the Ussuriysk garrison military court found the officer guilty of abuse of office, he was sentenced to 6 years in prison.
In April 2021, the Supreme Court held that the state should be held responsible for the death of conscript soldier Stanisław Kuzema, who committed suicide due to hazing in the army. He was subjected to physical violence and humiliation by Senior Lieutenant Yevgeny Khomyakov. Then the family of the deceased filed a lawsuit against the Ministry of Defense for moral damages in the amount of 9 million rubles.
This is not the first time that conscripts have committed suicide after prolonged bullying by co-workers or superiors. Similar incidents also occurred in 2022 and 2023, during the war in Ukraine, where conscripts are sent. Sergei Gridin, a 20-year-old conscript from Komi, committed suicide in a military unit in the Moscow region – he had a suicide note with him, in which he wrote that his "entered into the rotation to Ukraine." He expressed his unwillingness to go to war, after which he was bullied by the sergeants and the commander.
