‘Above the rules’ Russian train supervisor gets demoted after arguing with soldier over ‘box of gifts’ for fighters in Ukraine

A disagreement on a Russian train between the train’s supervisor and a soldier who refused to pay for excess baggage — allegedly containing “gifts” for service members fighting in Ukraine — spiraled into a scandal after a video of the confrontation was posted online. Following accusations from a pro-Kremlin Telegram channel that the railway employee had shown “disrespect” to the soldier, Russian Railways apologized to the “high-ranking officer” and demoted the supervisor to conductor. Mediazona spoke with the former supervisor’s colleague to uncover more details. Meduza summarizes the story.

In late October, an argument on the St. Petersburg–Belgorod train between a soldier and train supervisor Matvey Shumeyko escalated into a controversy that ultimately led to Shumeyko’s demotion. The soldier, described as a “high-ranking officer” by Lavrenty Pavlovich, the pro-Kremlin Telegram channel that first reported the incident, refused to pay for excess baggage, claiming he was transporting “gifts for participants in the special military operation (SVO).”

According to the soldier, the box he brought on board was too large to fit in his compartment, so he left it in the train’s vestibule. Footage of the confrontation, recorded by another passenger, shows Shumeyko explaining that the oversized luggage violated railway rules, which limit the size of baggage passengers can bring into compartments.

Shumeyko told the soldier he could pay for space in the baggage car and move the box there but declined to help carry it, citing railway regulations that prohibit staff from handling passengers’ belongings. While the box itself is not shown in the video, the conversation suggests it was not only large but also extremely heavy. According to the other passenger, it took three people to load the box onto the train.

The soldier and the other passenger argued that railway staff should make an exception, given the box’s contents and the soldier’s status as a “special passenger.” “Don’t you have any exceptions for the special military operation?” the soldier asked. “No. Unfortunately, no,” Shumeyko replied.

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What happened after the argument is unclear from the video, but the soldier later vented his frustrations to Lavrenty Pavlovich. He criticized Shumeyko, claiming that the supervisor “didn’t serve in the military, is unmarried,” and showed “obvious discontent toward special military operation participants and their gifts.” “How can such people be placed in leadership roles, especially in times like these, when every leader must be a patriot of the state?” the soldier asked.

Lavrenty Pavlovich demanded an explanation from Russian Railways for what it described as “disrespect toward SVO participants.” According to an update published by the channel on November 3, Russian Railways management apologized to the soldier, asked the channel to delete its post about the incident, and announced that Shumeyko would face disciplinary action. A supposed “source” told the channel that Shumeyko had been issued a draft notice and would be sent to the combat zone in Ukraine.

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Mediazona later confirmed through one of Shumeyko’s colleagues that he had been demoted and now works as a conductor. The colleague also revealed that management had attempted to fire Shumeyko outright.

“They called him in and harshly berated him for, in fact, following his job description to the letter,” the colleague told Mediazona. “I know they yelled at him, and the head of passenger service for the Northwest branch of the Federal Passenger Company issued an order to fire him. But the head of the train department — a subordinate of the branch — ignored the order, saying, ‘We’re already short on people, take your orders to hell.’”

The colleague described Shumeyko as an “excellent train supervisor” who had received no complaints before the incident. “He genuinely tries hard,” she said.

According to Mediazona, Shumeyko is a 21-year-old graduate of a railway technical school. He’s currently enrolled in a part-time program at St. Petersburg State Transport University. Shumeyko has not commented on the incident or clarified whether he actually received a draft notice. His colleague speculated that the notice was likely a scare tactic, as railway employees are exempt from military conscription.

“Situations involving military personnel are always tense. The rules apply to everyone, but SVO guys often feel they’re above them,” she said. “I recently shared a train compartment with an SVO guy who bragged about going to the theater and demanding a free ticket ‘because he’s fighting for them.’ At the Mariinsky, I think. And they gave it to him!”