Mikhail Zhilin

Major of the Federal Guard Service. Crossed the border with Kazakhstan after mobilisation was announced and requested asylum. In a video message he stated that he refused to kill Ukrainian citizens. A case of illegal border crossing was also brought against Zhilin in Kazakhstan. On 2 December, he was sentenced to a six-month suspended sentence and expulsion from the country. Zhilin tried to fly to Armenia, but he was detained at the airport. He was kept in custody. On 30 December, Zhilin was deported to Russia, where a case of desertion was opened against him. On 24 March 2023, he was sentenced to six and a half years in a strict regime colony.