For the first time in Ukraine, a Russian soldier who shot a Ukrainian prisoner was sentenced to life in prison

A Russian soldier who shot a Ukrainian prisoner of war in the Zaporizhia direction was sentenced to life imprisonment.

This was reported by the Security Service (SBU) and the Prosecutor Generalʼs Office (PGO).

They emphasize that this is the first sentence in the history of Ukraine when an occupier received such a term precisely for the shooting of a member of the Defense Forces.

According to the investigation, the convicted person is 27-year-old Russian citizen Dmitry Kurashov. He previously served time in a Russian prison for theft, and in November 2023 signed a contract with the Russian Ministry of Defense in exchange for amnesty.

In the Russian army, he was assigned as a rifleman in the "Storm-V" assault detachment of the 127th Motorized Rifle Division of the Eastern Military District of the Russian Federation.

On January 6, 2024, Kurashov, together with other occupiers, attacked Ukrainian defenders near the village of Priyutne in Zaporizhzhia.

The Ukrainian defender came out of the dugout without weapons, raised his hands and clearly showed that he was surrendering. At the request of the Russian military, he knelt down, and the occupier opened fire with a Kalashnikov assault rifle. The Ukrainian soldier died on the spot.

On the same day, the Defense Forces knocked out the occupiers from their occupied positions, capturing Kurashov and four of his comrades as the only survivors.

On March 8, 2025, Kurashov was declared a suspect. Now the court has found him guilty of violating the laws and customs of war, combined with premeditated murder (Part 2 of Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

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