Russian Officer Prisoned 6 Years for Crimea Bridge Drone Defense Failure

A National Guard officer from Russia has been sentenced to six years in prison for his role in acquiring ineffective anti-drone radars that failed to protect the Crimea bridge on Tuesday, according to reports.

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Colonel Sergei Volkov, who formerly led Rosgvardia's naval unit, was apprehended in March 2023 under charges of abusing his position by signing a 400 million ruble ($4.5 million) contract for two Oryol-BPLA radar systems. 

Investigators claimed that Volkov's actions exposed the Crimea bridge to enemy fire, as the radars' technical specifications were insufficient in neutralizing Ukrainian drones, as said in the Kommersant business daily. 

According to the state-run TASS news agency, Volkov denied his guilt and argued that the contract was signed with a different supplier and the purpose of the anti-drone radars was to protect the National Guard unit, not the Crimea bridge.

As reported by the independent Mediazona news website, Moscow's Second Western Military Garrison Court found Volkov guilty and gave him a six-year sentence in a general-security prison.

The prosecutors had requested a seven-year sentence.

Although the court did not strip Volkov of his military rank and awards, it allowed Russia's National Guard to file a civil lawsuit against him.

Volkov is expected to appeal the verdict. 

Kyiv has been relentlessly focusing its attacks on Crimea, which Russia took control of from Ukraine in 2014 during a full-scale invasion. 

Recently, the Black Sea peninsula has faced even more intense assaults as Ukrainian authorities reveal their intentions to reclaim it. In particular, Kyiv has repeatedly directed its attention towards the Crimea bridge, a crucial supply route connecting the peninsula to the Russian mainland and supporting Moscow's military operations. 

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