In Penza, Kamenka and Kuznetsk, local residents and rights projects say law enforcement officers, military enlistment staff and Rosgvardiya personnel have been conducting raids targeting men, after which detainees are allegedly pressured into signing contracts with the Russian Defense Ministry for deployment to the war in Ukraine. The reports were published by Vazhnye Istorii, Mediazona, Govorit NeMoskva, Varlamov News, DSO and the project Idite Lesom.
What witnesses say
The reports became widely known after a video posted on June 17 by Penza resident Natalya Solomina. In the footage, women standing by a bus with men near a draft office try to stop them from being taken away and shout that their relatives were beaten and forced to sign contracts. Mediazona said the video was filmed outside the enlistment office for Penza’s Oktyabrsky and Zheleznodorozhny districts.
According to Idite Lesom, the project received several messages from the Penza region. Residents said men were detained directly on the streets, cars and public transport were stopped, and the men were then put into vehicles and taken away to sign contracts. One of the earliest reports came from Kamenka, where, in the words of a local woman, men were “forcibly busified.”
Varlamov News, citing witnesses, reported that checkpoints staffed by military personnel, OMON officers and traffic police were set up in Penza in the morning, while men were detained in different parts of the city. One witness said people were seized in the street, pulled from their cars, taken to the enlistment office and beaten there. In Kuznetsk, according to the channel’s sources, even taxi drivers may have taken men to the police station. There were also reports of door-to-door checks in the Sputnik neighborhood.
“Everyone is calling each other and warning people not to let the men go outside. Right in front of me, a cashier at a shopping center shouted to some guy working there to stay inside and not go out for a smoke because they were waiting outside,” Govorit NeMoskva quoted a local resident as saying.
Subscribers to the Mobilization channel claim that detainees are being brought to the enlistment office on Skladskaya Street in Penza, the same place seen in the video with the women. They say people there are being heavily pressured and beaten. Some of those detained were reportedly minors, but they were released after their age was confirmed.
Authorities’ response
The Penza regional authorities have not commented on the reports of forcible deployment to war. At the same time, the regional branch of Rosgvardiya reported a joint raid “to identify citizens who had not registered for military service.” According to the official version, officers checked 80 drivers, identified nine Russians who were not on the military register, and handed them draft notices. The statement also said participants in the raid were informed about the “opportunities and advantages” of contract service.