The commanders of the Russian prisoner convinced his mother that her son had died, and offered to take the body.

20-year-old Russian Yaroslav Mishchenko, who was at war, ended up there straight from prison, where he was sentenced for drug possession. His mother, Raisa, claims that the case against her son was fabricated. During the investigation, according to the mother, he was thoroughly manipulated by armed recruiters, hinting that his only chance to avoid problems was to sign a contract and go to the front. Yaroslav could not withstand the pressure and agreed. Thus, he ended up in the 163rd Tank Regiment (150th Motorized Rifle Division, military unit 84839). This was reported by the project 'Our Exit'.

In March 2025, Yaroslav was taken captive. The young man, who was made a drone operator, was thrown into an assault by his commanders. 'I don't want to go. I want to live,' Yaroslav said in a video recorded before deployment, where he managed to talk about the crimes and cruelties of the command. However, he was still sent into the attack and he was captured.

Relatives immediately confirmed the fact of captivity through the 'I Want to Find' project. But the military enlistment office and the unit refused to acknowledge this: Mishchenko is officially considered 'missing in action.'

Soon, Raisa received a call from the unit, demanding DNA and offering to collect her son's body. The woman did not believe it, as she knew her son was alive. The commanders continued to persuade her otherwise, providing no evidence.

During a conversation with Raisa, a participant in the 'Our Exit' movement, Iryna Krynina, showed her a video from captivity. On it was Yaroslav. He was alive, healthy, and waiting for an exchange. His voice became a hope for his mother, and the video itself was the most convincing evidence that would help obtain the status of 'prisoner of war' for him in Russia.

According to the mother, the family will do everything possible to ensure that Yaroslav Mishchenko no longer returns to war.

Previously, a captive occupier spoke about the construction of a luxurious bath for the Russian Prime Minister in Crimea.

Earlier, Russian company commander Vladislav Balgrabski led the rest of his company into captivity under the National Guard's 13th Brigade near Kharkiv, known as 'Charter'.

It was reported that on the outskirts of temporarily occupied Melitopol in the Zaporizhzhia region, an armored vehicle 'Tiger' of the Russian invaders exploded. This led to the death of five occupiers.

By the way, Russia is facing serious military and economic problems that raise doubts about its ability to continue a full-scale war in Ukraine.