A soldier from Kabardino-Balkaria was sentenced to prison for evading military service.

The court sentenced Ramazan Lukozhev to five years in prison for being absent from his military unit for 11 months during mobilization.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot," on September 4, 2022, parts 2.1, 3.1, and 5 of Article 337, concerning unauthorized abandonment of a unit or place of service during mobilization, were introduced into the Russian Criminal Code. The amendments provide for imprisonment for up to 10 years. Tighter legislation following the announcement of mobilization led to harsher sentences for absence from a military unit and desertion.

A serviceman named Lukozhev was found guilty under Part 5 1 of Article 337 of the Russian Criminal Code, the Nalchik Garrison Military Court reported on its VKontakte page.

08:14 28.03.2026

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According to the court, Lukozhev failed to report to his military unit at the appointed time on April 11, 2025, during his mobilization, without good reason.

"On March 16, 2026, Lukozhev voluntarily reported to the military investigative department stationed in Nalchik, Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, and from April 11, 2025, to March 16, 2026, Lukozhev spent his time at his own discretion at his place of residence," the publication states.

In court, Lukozhev fully admitted his guilt "and expressed regret for his actions." "At the same time, when sentencing, the court took into account the factual circumstances of the case related to the period of Lukozhev's evasion of military service, the nature and degree of public danger posed by the defendant's actions, which constituted a serious crime against military service," the court stated.

The serviceman was sentenced to five years in a general regime penal colony. "The convicted person was taken into custody in the courtroom and placed in a pretrial detention facility," the publication noted.

The court's press service did not provide the name of the convicted person. According to the case file on the court's website, the accused is Ramazan Lukozhev.

This convicted person is a serviceman from Kabardino-Balkaria, according to the newspaper Gazeta Yuga.

As a reminder, on September 21, 2022, Vladimir Putin announced partial mobilization. On October 28 of that year, the Minister of Defense reported to the president on its completion, but no corresponding decree followed. Lawyers have concluded that a presidential decree is not needed to end partial mobilization, Putin's press secretary explained.

Moreover, on December 12, 2023, a military court in Maykop, in its verdict against a mobilized soldier who left his unit in June 2023, emphasized that "a partial mobilization was declared in the Russian Federation, which was not completed at the time the crime was committed."