St. Petersburg-based artist Viktor Zabuga, who faced allegations of sexual violence from two women in 2024, has joined the conflict in Ukraine. War correspondent Dmitry Zimenkin of Izvestia featured Zabuga in a frontline report, which later gained attention through Paper’s coverage.
The article does not explicitly name the artist but refers to him by his military alias "Linza" and notes his affiliation with the Rus unit. While the report omits any mention of the assault accusations preceding his deployment, Zimenkin quotes Zabuga as saying he "recognized his divergence from contemporary bohemian circles when the special military operation commenced."