Heroes of our time
In Russia, funds are being raised for plaques and exhibitions are being held in local libraries to commemorate the fallen mercenaries among the former prisoners recruited to fight in Ukraine. "NeMoskva" continues its series on "Wagner heroes" and other former convicts who died in the war with Ukraine.
In the village of Yezhevo in the Udmurt region, money was raised to create a memorial plaque in the Memorial Square for the mercenary. To Igor Aleksandrovich BekmemetyevHe died on October 20, 2022, in Popasnaya. Igor Bekmemetyev was sentenced to three years for stabbing his partner. She expressed dissatisfaction with Bekmemetyev's drinking and asked him to leave the house and find a new place.
Bekmemetyev pleaded guilty in court. He then filed an appeal, requesting a suspended sentence because he has an elderly mother and daughter who need emotional and financial support. However, the court upheld Bekmemetyev's sentence.
In the Amur Region, the staff of the Mazanovsky District Museum of History and Local Lore prepared an exhibition titled "Feat Knows No Time, Before It All Ages Are Equal." The exhibition was dedicated to fellow countrymen who died in the war in Ukraine. Among them were Wagner mercenaries recruited in the penal colonies.
Andrey Vitsinsky. He died on January 19, 2023, near Bakhmut. According to the Mazanovsky District Court, Vitsinsky was sentenced to six and a half years for attempted murder. Vitsinsky stated that the victim insulted his brother first and attacked him, and that he only used a knife to defend himself. The victim stated that Vitsinsky's brother insulted him first, and that he had no choice but to stand up for his dignity. The verdict also states: "Vitsinsky A.V. is registered with a psychiatrist with the diagnosis: 'Organic personality and behavioral disorder of complex etiology (perinatal, post-traumatic encephalopathy) with hallucinatory episodes.'"
Another Wagnerite featured at the exhibition is Vladimir Chepukhalin He burglarized a private home in his native village of Tambovka. He stole a metal fence with a gate and a wicket, two stoves, a metal grill, as well as buckets and basins. He initially received a suspended sentence, but because he failed to complete the court-ordered treatment for alcoholism, the court revoked the suspended sentence.
Schoolchildren in the village of Kildigulovo in the Burzyansky District of Bashkortostan are encouraged to be proud of Wagner PMC mercenary Faiz Galin. On November 4, a memorial plaque was unveiled on the building of the school where he studied.
"The head of the municipal district administration, Gaziz Manapov, thanked Faiz's parents for raising a worthy son of the Fatherland and a true patriot of his country," the local administration said in a press release. What it didn't mention was that Galina was sentenced to seven years in prison in 2019 for the murder of a drinking buddy. They had been drinking, had an argument, and he beat her. He died the next morning.
