A court in Uzbekistan's Samarkand region has sentenced a 23-year-old man, identified as Doston (name changed), to 3.6 years of restricted freedom for joining the Russian military under deception. The verdict was delivered on July 2, 2026, under Article 154-1, Part 2 of the Criminal Code (enlistment in foreign military service).

Doston traveled to Moscow in July 2025 for work. On August 13, he was stopped by migration officials who demanded a work patent. Lacking one, he was directed to an address where two Russian women allegedly used Google Translate to make him sign documents, later revealed to be a military contract. He was then taken to Voronezh and subsequently to Luhansk, Ukraine.

Doston refused to participate in military training, resulting in beatings and confinement. He managed to send his location to his father, who traveled to Moscow but failed to find him and received no assistance from the Uzbek embassy.

On March 13, 2026, Doston escaped, hiding in forests for 14 days before reaching the Uzbek embassy in Moscow on March 27. He returned to Uzbekistan on April 5 and was arrested.

In court, Doston pleaded guilty, stating he signed the contract unknowingly and did not take part in combat. The court imposed a sentence of restricted freedom, considering his circumstances.

Source: kun.uz