An ex-convict Russian soldier said officers in Putin's army refused to collect the dead bodies of fallen troops.
The soldier told The New York Times that it let the Russian military dodge paying their families compensation.
In an interview, the soldier who served in one of the Russian Ministry of Defense's convict units — who was identified as "Aleksandr" — told the Times he was ordered not to collect the bodies of his fellow troops.
He told the Times that officers could register the men as "missing in action," meaning their families couldn't collect compensation for them being killed in battle.
And last week, researchers with the BBC said they've identified more than 30,000 dead Russian soldiers by name, including 1,300 in the last two weeks alone.
Persons:
Aleksandr, —, they've
Organizations:
New York Times, Service, The New York Times, Russian Ministry, Times, Western intel, BBC, Wagner Group, Russian Ministry of Defense
Locations:
Russian, Russia, Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Western