Russian Soldier Sentenced to 12 Years for Raping Woman in Donetsk Region

A 50-year-old Russian serviceman from Sverdlovsk region has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for repeatedly raping a 57-year-old woman for two months in an occupied village in Donetsk region, according to the Prosecutor's General Office. The serviceman had a prior conviction for robbery and armed robbery, totaling 32 years in prison, before joining the military after his release.

He was found guilty under Part 1, Article 438 of Ukraine's Criminal Code, which is the maximum sentence allowed under that provision. The attack occurred in September 2025 during an infiltration of a village in Pokrovsk district by a small infantry group. The perpetrator, along with two other Russian soldiers, occupied a private house's basement where two local residents were sheltering from shelling.

The woman was left alone with the three armed soldiers, and she was subjected to rape from early October 2025 until December when the Armed Forces of Ukraine captured the Russian soldier during a combat operation. The victim had no means to defend herself, and the perpetrator threatened her with death if she resisted. Despite denying the crime during the trial, prosecutors presented sufficient evidence for the conviction.

This case is one of many documented instances of war crimes committed by Russian soldiers since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, as noted by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) on July 9.