(TYUMEN OBLAST, RUSSIA) – A growing number of violent crimes in Russia involving former participants in the war against Ukraine is raising concerns about public safety, social integration, and the government’s ability to manage the return of demobilised fighters.
A recent investigative broadcast documented several cases in which returning combatants were involved in serious assaults, theft, and domestic killings. The programme also featured interviews with Russian citizens who said that public places and even private homes had become increasingly unsafe.
One of the cases involved Sergey Popravko, a former prisoner who had joined the military through a contract system. After returning from the war, he attempted to steal alcohol from a supermarket. When confronted, he struck a store employee, who later died from head injuries. Popravko was sentenced to seven years in a high security colony.
Court records show that this was not his first offence. After an earlier return from the front, he had been convicted of theft and robbery. Investigators reported that he withdrew 12,800 roubles, about £110 or roughly 140 US dollars, from another person’s bank card and later stole a mobile phone. He had previously served time for stealing property, including a television worth nearly 8,000 roubles, around £70 or 85 US dollars.
Popravko had entered the war from prison, where he had been serving a sentence for theft since 2022. Under Russia’s contract system, participation in combat allowed him to clear his criminal record.
Another case took place in a family in Tyumen Oblast. A 41 year old school cook, Ekaterina, was killed by her husband Aleksei after he returned from the war. Relatives said that he had previously abused her and was prone to jealousy.
During a birthday celebration in October 2024 at a country house, witnesses said Aleksei became violent after seeing his wife dance with a friend. He dragged her by the hair, struck her repeatedly, and slammed her against the floor. A friend later told investigators that Ekaterina’s last words were a plea for help.
When her older children arrived later that night, they found Aleksei washing her body in the bathroom. She was already dead. She was buried in Yalutorovsk. In August 2025, he was sentenced to 11 years in a high security colony and ordered to pay two million roubles, about £17,000 or 21,500 US dollars, in compensation. He has appealed the verdict.
In another case from Perm Krai, a former fighter, Dmitry Yefimov, was convicted of beating his mother to death. Investigators said he repeatedly struck her while intoxicated. He later claimed he had not intended to kill her. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Relatives said Yefimov had a long history of violence and alcohol abuse. Records show he had previously served time in prison and later joined the military under a contract scheme.
The broadcast also cited official data on unemployment among returning fighters. In late 2024, Kremlin official Sergey Novikov said that around 250,000 former combatants had been unable to find work after returning from Ukraine.
The figure was initially reported by RIA Novosti and Kommersant, but later edited down to “several tens of thousands”. Metadata from earlier versions, however, continued to show the original number. Pro Kremlin outlet Tsargrad retained the higher figure.
Novikov later said that about 167,000 former soldiers had “returned to civilian life”, without clarifying how many were employed. The Russian government has previously claimed that 57 per cent of demobilised personnel were working, but did not publish detailed data.
In 2024, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin instructed the government and the “Defenders of the Fatherland” fund, overseen by Anna Tsivileva, to improve employment and reintegration programmes for veterans.
However, military bloggers and commentators, including Pavel Ivanov and Yuri Evich, have warned that hundreds of thousands of former fighters remain marginalised, unemployed, and poorly supported.
They argue that Russia lacks a comprehensive rehabilitation system for veterans, particularly for psychological trauma. Many returnees report receiving no structured counselling or reintegration support.
Low civilian wages are also cited as a major obstacle. In some regions, municipal workers earn about 60,000 roubles per month, around £510 or 650 US dollars, often after paying for accommodation. Commentators say this makes civilian employment unattractive to former soldiers accustomed to higher wartime payments.
The programme also featured street interviews with Russian citizens. Some dismissed the crimes as isolated incidents. Others expressed concern about aggression, alcohol abuse, and possible drug use among returning fighters.
Several interviewees said prolonged exposure to violence had damaged mental health and made reintegration difficult. Some warned that those who had “nothing left to lose” could become a long term threat to public order.
Analysts say the rise in violent incidents highlights deeper structural problems in Russia’s handling of demobilisation. The use of prisoners and socially marginalised men in the war has created a large group of returnees with limited prospects and extensive trauma.
Despite official assurances that the situation is under control, independent observers note that censorship and data manipulation have made it difficult to assess the true scale of the problem.
