Investigation promised into brutal Russian army bullying
As investigators probed the incident, rights groups attacked military officials for condoning bullying in the military and warned such crimes would continue until conscription was abolished.
Doctors said Private Andrei Sychev, aged 18, remained in a grave condition after his legs and genitals were amputated following the New Year’s Eve incident at the Chelyabinsk Tank Academy, in which older soldiers forced him to spend hours crouched and beat him.
Seven other conscripts were beaten in the same incident.
Eight servicemen, including several officers, had been detained in the Ural Mountains city of Chelyabinsk, 1,180 miles east of Moscow.
Pte Sychev was taken to hospital only several days after the beating, when he was already unable to stand. Prosecutors are also investigating why doctors at the unit denied him immediate treatment.
Authorities called Sychev’s mother, Galina, only after he had already undergone his first amputation. “Why didn’t anyone tell me, ‘Come here, your son is in grave condition’?” she said on TV, wiping her tears.
Pte Sychev, who is unable to speak, scribbled the name of his most cruel tormentor.
“He tries to speak, but he can’t, and he can’t eat,” his mother said.
Russian defence minister Sergei Ivanov promised to punish the culprits. “We won’t cover anything ... or anyone up,” he said.
Official statistics say 16 soldiers died in such incidents last year, but experts said the true number was much higher, with conscripts driven to suicide and other bullying deaths written off as illnesses.
The defence ministry said 276 servicemen had killed themselves last year.
All Russian men aged between 18 and 27 are required to serve two years in the armed forces - three years for the navy.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
