Russia is holding Ukraine’s south with convicts: 69 percent have records. And they’re fighting where civilians live

Over two-thirds of the Russian soldiers guarding the Zaporizhzhia front have criminal records, according to Ukraine's spokesperson Anastasia Shevchenko. These soldiers made up over 69 percent of the force, according to Shevchenko. Many of them enlisted to avoid prosecution, with 31 percent of them doing so specifically to dodge criminal liability.

Others joined for financial gain, as 24 percent of the soldiers enlisted for money. The remaining soldiers joined through ordinary contracts and mobilization. The majority of these soldiers are over the age of 30, with 36 percent falling between the ages of 31 and 40, and another 24 percent between 41 and 50. Only 9 percent are under the age of 20.

This force is composed of experienced men with criminal records, rather than fresh conscripts, making it a formidable, albeit disposable, force on the battlefield. However, Shevchenko did not mention any signs of a replenishment of this force. Russia currently has enough men and equipment to continue fighting, but no substantial new recruits are coming in.

The prison pipeline, which has been responsible for pulling well over 100,000 inmates into the war, is beginning to break down. Word of the battlefield's lethality has spread through the prisons, causing some inmates to sign up only to leave the front quickly. This breakdown in Russia's practice of replenishing its ranks from prisons has forced officials to resort to more coercive measures to maintain the flow of soldiers.