Russian bailiffs reportedly canceling debts of former prisoners fighting in Ukraine

Russian bailiffs have begun canceling the debts of former prisoners fighting in Ukraine as part of Defense Ministry units, the independent outlet Verstka reported on Friday, citing Federal Bailiff Service files.

According to the outlet, bailiffs are terminating enforcement proceedings over unpaid loans, state duties, and civil suits affecting the former convicts, often citing their inability to find an income source for the debtors, property to repossess, or the debtors themselves.

A bailiff in the city of Tambov, for example, terminated proceedings to recover 639,000 rubles ($6,442) owed by a man fighting in Ukraine named Pavel Alyokhin who was sentenced to 26 years in prison for the robbery and murder of a 91-year-old woman. The court also exempted him from paying 321,000 rubles ($3,236) in moral damages to the victim’s friend.

Another notable case is that of Kemerovo native Vladislav Kanyus, who was cleared of a 9,200-ruble ($93) loan debt. In the summer of 2022, Kanyus was sentenced to 17 years in prison for the murder of his 23-year-old ex-girlfriend Vera Pekhteleva.