A.O. left for Russia in September 2021 in search of work, but soon found himself at the center of a criminal case on charges of theft, which led to his five-year imprisonment. In 2022, while in prison, he decided to sign a contract with the Ministry of Defense of Russia in hopes of ending the physical and psychological abuse he was subjected to in the colony.
After signing the contract, he was sent to a training ground in the Luhansk region, where he was offered military training. During one of the training sessions, he sustained a gunshot wound to his right shoulder, which resulted in his hospitalization for 20 days. Taking advantage of the situation, the Uzbek man escaped from the hospital and headed to his country's consulate located in Rostov-on-Don.
Diplomats helped him arrange all the necessary documents for his return home, and in November of last year, he returned to Tashkent.
At the court hearing, A.O. admitted his guilt, expressed remorse, and requested a leniency in his sentence. Ultimately, the court found him guilty under part 1 of Article 154 ("Mercenarism") of the Criminal Code of Uzbekistan and imposed a sentence of four years of restriction of freedom.
