Pardoned Convicts and Mercenary Troops Terrorize Russian Towns
Former convicts who were pardoned by Putin after fighting for the Wagner paramilitary organization in Ukraine are returning to their home towns and committing violent crimes, including murder. Many of these former criminals were recruited by Wagner, which has reportedly recruited tens of thousands of inmates, including murderers and domestic abusers, to fight in Ukraine. The releases have stoked fears that the men will go on to commit further crimes, worries that will only grow following a string of violent crimes perpetrated by former Wagner soldiers.