In the Sochi 155th Brigade, the new commander established an investigation department, promising families of the missing answers.

This was reported by the Commissioner for the Protection of the Rights of Servicemen and Their Families, Olga Reshetilova.

She explained that investigators are essentially reconstructing events minute by minute during which communication with servicemen was lost. They are also determining what measures were taken for evacuation and analyzing intelligence reports to understand what might have happened to the missing comrades.

“This is a good example of a non-formal approach to conducting official investigations, but rather a genuine effort to ascertain the circumstances, which should be implemented in other military units. However, such investigative departments should be deployed not after the fact, but in real-time,” Reshetilova wrote.

The ombudsperson noted that soon the families of the missing from the 155th Brigade should be provided with comprehensive information regarding the situation with their loved ones.

“Days of intensive work in combat units provide a completely different understanding of the course of events. While discussions about the fate of the 155th Brigade were ongoing in Kyiv, its servicemen continued to engage in heroic battles: they were storming, repelling, and holding positions,” Reshetilova emphasized.

Earlier, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine announced that the 155th Brigade is receiving additional staffing and is carrying out specific tasks at full capacity.

What happened in the 155th Brigade?

In early January, journalist Yuriy Butusov stated that 1,700 servicemen from the 155th Separate Mechanized Brigade named after Anna of Kyiv deserted even before the unit fired its first shot. Specifically, dozens of soldiers fled during exercises in France.

Additionally, the journalist pointed out that the brigade lacked the necessary number of drones and electronic warfare means, which resulted in Western equipment suffering losses during the initial attempts to use it at the front.

The Commander of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Mykhailo Drapaty, described the situation with desertion in the 155th Brigade as complex; however, he stated that these were not mass cases.

The State Bureau of Investigations established that former brigade commander Dmitry Ryumshin included unmotivated men in the list of soldiers sent for military training in France, concerning whom there were warnings and prohibitions.

According to the investigation, the command staff reported to the brigade commander verbally and also submitted reports and documents regarding desertion, but he, contrary to the law, did not inform the pre-trial investigation bodies. Therefore, law enforcement could not initiate the procedure for searching and returning the soldiers to their units and reserve battalions. Some subordinates, according to the investigation, periodically deserted, feeling complete impunity.

Currently, Ryumshin is in custody, and he has been informed of suspicions of inaction during martial law.