1/ Russian soldiers are not only victimised by their comrades, their superiors, and military recruiters, but by their own lawyers, who steal hundreds of thousands of rubles from them via various scams. "FRAUD IS THRIVING IN RUSSIA," a warblogger concludes. ⬇️
2/ Russian warblogger Anastasia Kashevarova, who campaigns for soldiers' welfare, highlights "how lawyers steal from Special Military Operation soldiers and their families". She says they frequently take money for services that they can't deliver. 3/ "We'll help you leave your contract," "we'll help you get on the exchange list." These fraudulent lawyers charge 200,000 rubles [$2,463] and up for this. After they've taken 200,000 or 500,000 rubles [$6K] from the family, they write to me, "Help me get on the exchange list." 4/ "One such case. A lawyer took money from a family to get their soldier on the exchange list. The soldier is actually in captivity; there's photo and video evidence; he sent a letter through the Red Cross. 5/ "What the family does: they don't go to the military registration and enlistment office, they don't go to the military unit. They saw an ad for some law firm and went to them. 6/ "They say to get on the exchange list, sign a contract with us—it's not cheap—and we'll resolve the issue. The family paid 500,000 rubles, so what does the lawyer do? 7/ "He emails me asking me to provide the soldier's details so they can get him on the exchange list, which the General Staff already has. THIS IS A FRAUD! He knew in advance that it was all free and no lawyer was needed. He simply extorted money from people. 8/ "The prisoner is automatically included in the exchange.The General Staff and military units also review all videos of captivity, the Red Cross also passes on information about prisoners to the Ministry of Defence, and if relatives themselves learn of it,… 9/ …they can also pass on information about captivity through State Duma deputy Shamsail Saraliev, Human Rights Commissioner Yana Lantratova, and through me. It's all done quickly, without lawyers and without money. 10/ "Case 2. A law firm took money, promising that the soldier would be included in the exchange. It turned out the soldier had been missing in action for eight months. There was no confirmation that he was in captivity. 11/ "The family didn't appeal, but paid almost a million to lawyers. They contacted us, and we told them to go to the military registration and enlistment office, give a DNA test, and request all the necessary documents regarding the status and circumstances of the disappearance. 12/ "A month later, the DNA matched, and his dog tag was found. They identified him. These lawyers continue to operate and deceive people. 13/ "Case 3. We saw an ad on VKontakte from lawyers "We'll help you terminate your contract with the Ministry of Defence." The price tag was 2 million rubles [$24,600]. The soldier fell for it, they took him to various clinics, and then the lawyers stopped communicating. 14/ "The result: he was reported as absent without leave, caught, and sent to the Storm V detachment. 15/ "No one can help you terminate your contract; they're permanent. Unless you're in the category of unfit, the only parent left, or you're dead. Everything else is a lie; they don't fire you. 16/ "Whose responsibility is it? Law enforcement agencies act after the fact, punishing criminals. But the system for allocating money to soldiers is such that it's very easy to profit from it. This attracts scum, and they profit from the lives and blood of others. 17/ "The Ministry of Justice should monitor the legal services market. Supervisory agencies should fine lawyers for fraudulently advertising that they can help you quit your contract, put you on an exchange list, or find missing persons. 18/ "P.S.: Real lawyers, real defenders of the law, are fighting these charlatans who have infiltrated their ranks, but so far they have failed to achieve a firm and fair stance from the state overseers of the legal field. FRAUD IS THRIVING IN RUSSIA!" /end Source: t.me