Vladislav Krenik

He served as a cook in one of the military units in Omsk. In November 2022, he learnt that his unit would be sent to war in Ukraine. He informed the commander that he "did not want to kill people" and requested a transfer to alternative military service, but his request was denied. Even before mobilisation, Krenik had a back condition, but he was still declared fit for military service with minor restrictions. After conscription, he lived in a tent camp, where he developed a back cold. He was examined at a military hospital, where he was prescribed painkillers. When the company commander demanded Krenik's military ID to assign him a weapon, he realised that he would soon be sent to a war zone without resolving his request for alternative service or receiving the opportunity to heal his back. As a result, the mobilised man's "psycho-emotional state severely deteriorated," and he returned home the same day. At home, Krenik attempted suicide, but his mother dissuaded him. He then sought psychiatric help and was treated in an inpatient facility for a time before continuing therapy at home. In April 2023, the military came to his home, but Krenik was not present at the time. When he was eventually apprehended, he stated that he had no intention of evading service but was attempting to secure a transfer to alternative service. To that end, he applied to the prosecutor's office and the human rights ombudsman, among others. Krenik also stated that he planned to return to his unit in April 2023, but his acute back pain prevented him from doing so. Initially, Krenik was charged with desertion (part 3 of article 338 of the Criminal Code), but during the trial, the prosecutor requested that the charge be reclassified to unauthorised abandonment of the unit for more than a month during mobilisation. On 27 December 2023, Krenik was sentenced to five years in a colony-settlement.