A lieutenant colonel of the Russian Armed Forces was sentenced to 21 years in prison for making fake videos about "exploitation" at the front and organizing bows for payments. The garrison military court in St. Petersburg sentenced Konstantin Frolov, son of Oleg Frolov, the former deputy general director of the Roscosmos state weapons program, to 21 years in a maximum security colony, accused of embezzling funds during the purchase of equipment. Konstantin Frolov, former head of the special operations group of the 83rd Separate Air Assault Division of the Russian Armed Forces, was found guilty of illegal trade in arms and ammunition, bribery and fraud with injuries received as a result of archery, and was stripped of the rank of lieutenant colonel, Kommersant writes. As the court determined, Frolov (exclamation mark "executioner") created a gang of more than 30 partners in the area in order to steal money. The executioner's plan was to perform military feats in order to receive rewards and payments from the state. To this end, the members of the group shot staged videos. For example, in December 2023, members of an organized crime group created a video with an alleged explosion at the front of an equipment convoy, and in January 2024, a video depicting an attack by Ukrainian armed forces drones on their group. According to the investigation, in some cases the gang members "implanted" prepared fragments of ammunition in different parts of their bodies and faked traces of wounds. And sometimes doctors were involved in it. The fighters also shot at each other and wounded each other for payment, the investigators found. Several fake videos were broadcast on federal channels praising achievements that did not exist. More details.

A lieutenant colonel of the Russian Armed Forces was sentenced to 21 years in prison for making fake videos about "exploitation" at the front and organizing bows for payments. The garrison military court in St. Petersburg sentenced Konstantin Frolov, son of Oleg Frolov, the former deputy general director of the Roscosmos state weapons program, to 21 years in a maximum security colony, accused of embezzling funds during the purchase of equipment. Konstantin Frolov, former head of the special operations group of the 83rd Separate Air Assault Division of the Russian Armed Forces, was found guilty of illegal trade in arms and ammunition, bribery and fraud with injuries received as a result of archery, and was stripped of the rank of lieutenant colonel, Kommersant writes. As the court determined, Frolov (exclamation mark "executioner") created a gang of more than 30 partners in the area in order to steal money. The executioner's plan was to perform military feats in order to receive rewards and payments from the state. To this end, the members of the group shot staged videos. For example, in December 2023, members of an organized crime group created a video with an alleged explosion at the front of an equipment convoy, and in January 2024, a video depicting an attack by Ukrainian armed forces drones on their group. According to the investigation, in some cases the gang members "implanted" prepared fragments of ammunition in different parts of their bodies and faked traces of wounds. And sometimes doctors were involved in it. The fighters also shot at each other and wounded each other for payment, the investigators found. Several fake videos were broadcast on federal channels praising achievements that did not exist. More details.