A 37-year-old Russian soldier is accused of holding a Ukrainian woman as a sex slave during the occupation of part of Kherson Oblast, according to investigators. The soldier, identified as Zunel Bratov, has been charged and will face trial, reported the investigative journalism outlet Slidstvo.Info.
The Kherson Oblast Prosecutor’s Office has gathered sufficient evidence to indict Bratov, who serves in the 25th Separate Guards Special Purpose Regiment of the Russian Armed Forces. According to the prosecution, Bratov participated in the seizure of part of Kherson Oblast during the first year of the full-scale war. During the occupation of one of the settlements, the Russian soldier noticed a local, forced her into a car, and took her to the house where he was living at the time.
For about a month, the Russian held the victim captive in the house and systematically raped her. Under duress, she was forced to serve him and endured beatings and confinement in the basement if she did not comply with his orders.
Journalists from Slidstvo.Info identified the Russian soldier suspected of committing this crime as 37-year-old Zunel Mukhadinovich Bratov.
On his page on the social network Odnoklassniki, Bratov indicates that he lives in Stavropol, Russia. He is married to a Russian woman, Diana Bratova, and regularly posts photos with his children on his Instagram account.
In one of the photos posted by Diana Bratova, the couple’s sons are dressed in Soviet military uniforms with St. George’s ribbons on their chests.
Under one of the photos where Zunel Bratov is kissing, presumably, his son, commenters congratulate him on his return home.
Another fact provides evidence that Bratov began serving in the Russian military before the full-scale war in Ukraine: In the summer of 2021, the Russian Ministry of Defense awarded the invader a medal “For Distinction in Combat.” A photo of the award was published by Bratov’s relative, Maya Bratova.
Bratov’s profile picture on Instagram is a photo of him in military uniform.
Zunel Bratov has a brother, Amir, who serves in the Russian police. In 2020, the Minister of Internal Affairs in the Karachay-Cherkess Republic presented Amir Bratov with a certificate of appreciation “for conscientious performance of official duties.”
If Zunel Bratov is found guilty in court, he faces 8 to 12 years in prison.
