Sergey Lezhnev, a counselor to the governor of Orel Oblast, who is currently in pre-trial detention, has requested to be deployed to a war zone in Ukraine. This information was shared on June 3 by Valentina Ostroushko, a former deputy of the Orel Regional Council.
Sergey Lezhnev, a counselor to the governor of Orel Oblast, asked for permission to leave the pre-trial detention center and go to a war zone in Ukraine as a volunteer, according to Valentina Ostroushko, a former deputy of the Orel Regional Council. Ostroushko believes that Lezhnev is not 'destined to become a warrior' because he is involved in a serious case with 'threads leading to Moscow.'
Lezhnev, a close friend of Governor Andrey Klychkov, is charged with large-scale fraud. According to investigators, he participated in a criminal group and embezzled over 75 million rubles during the reconstruction and repair of the Red Bridge, the Friendship Bridge, and a bridge over the Sosna River.
During the announcement of the preventive measure for Lezhnev, he pleaded to be released, claiming that he did not have a foreign passport and that there was no one to replace him in delivering humanitarian aid to the frontlines.
Ostroushko believes it would be dangerous for Lezhnev to go to war. "Some very serious people are interested in his silence, and a shot in the back could solve certain individuals' problems... [They may present it] as if he died a courageous death at war," the former deputy elaborated.
Lezhnev became well-known after publishing photos and videos from a humanitarian aid unloading site. Soon after, this area was struck by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Lezhnev also made headlines by insulting Orel residents dissatisfied with the military's equipment, calling them 'pink asses' and 'traitors.' The Orel Oblast prosecutor's office considered this statement a violation of ethics but did not punish the counselor.