17 sailors from Russian missile cruiser Moskva declared dead by Sevastopol court

In Sevastopol, a court decision acknowledged the death of 17 sailors who went missing after the Black Sea Fleet flagship, the missile cruiser Moskva, was sunk by Ukrainian anti-ship missiles in April 2022. The court heard sixteen individual cases over the summer, and one more final case in September.

Dmitry Shkrebets, the father of Yegor Shkrebets, one of the sailors who died in the sinking of Moskva, told the news outlet Agentstvo that hearings took place at the request of the missing sailors’ bereaved parents. The military prosecutor’s office and the unit’s command represented the families in court.

Dmitry Shkrebets also told the journalists that other sailors, whose families did not petition the court, will be automatically declared dead after missing for six months. He says that he received a death certificate for his son Yegor in early August.

When the Moskva cruiser sank in mid-April, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that the crew had been fully evacuated.

Most of the ship’s sailors were young conscripts serving their mandatory one-year terms in the military. Their families publicized their disappearance on social networks, generating a significant outcry.

The exact number of sailors who died in the sinking of Moskva is unknown. A source close to the Black Sea Fleet command told Meduza that 37 servicemen had died on the ship. The Russian Defense Ministry acknowledged only one such death, declaring 27 other sailors to be missing in action.

Follow Meduza in English on Twitter to stay up to date.