[DIRECT WITNESS & ACCOMPLICE TO WAR CRIMES] (1,699 TIMECODED LINES) · 88TH SEPARATE MOTOR RIFLE BRIGADE 'SEVERNY VETER' (UNIT 26388, KLISHCHIIVKA – KIROVE – SOLEDAR) · Volodymyr Zolkin (@VolodymyrZolkin)
Ivan Valeryevich Tumanov (b. 11.01.1987) (Sarkel settlement, Tsimlyansky District, Rostov Oblast, RF)
Interviewer & Source: Volodymyr Zolkin (@VolodymyrZolkin) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVeq2JYU5fc)
Russian Military Unit: 3rd Motor Rifle Battalion (9th Company, Bn Cdr 'Dok') -> Platoon Commander, 2nd Motor Rifle Battalion (Bn Cdr 'Frank', Company Cdr 'Titanik', Deputy Coy Cdr 'Aginskiy'), 88th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade ('Severny Veter', Military Unit 26388), 3rd Guards Combined Arms Army, Southern MD (Brigade Cdr 'Kashtan'); Molkino Junior Officer Training Course (Jan–Mar 2025)
Claimed On-Camera Cover Story: Poses as an 'ordinary mobilized long-haul truck driver' (drafted 31.01.2023) who allegedly realized the criminal nature of the war back in March 2023 after his first assault near Spirne, received a 2-year suspended sentence for going AWOL, and thereafter remained a 'regular soldier' and passive bystander while Ukrainian POWs were executed near Klishchiivka, his subordinate 'Tsygan' gunned down a 60+ civilian woman in Kirove (Sviato-Pokrovske), and company officers in Soledar beat their own soldier to death with an 18-mm rebar inside a plastic pipe before blowing up the corpse with a TM-62 anti-tank mine.
Assessed Real Operational Profile: Commissioned junior officer (platoon commander) of the 2nd Battalion, 88th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade ('Severny Veter', Military Unit 26388, 3rd Guards CAA, Southern MD), graduate of the Molkino officer course (early 2025), who fought over 3.5 years across the Spirne – Klishchiivka – Zvanivka – Kirove (Sviato-Pokrovske) – Soledar – Orikhovatka/Yurkivka axis and gave on-record evidentiary testimony naming brigade and battalion commanders ('Kashtan', 'Dok', 'Frank', 'Titanik', 'Aginskiy', 'Igla', 'Byk', 'Tsygan') in systematic executions of Ukrainian POWs, the murder of an elderly civilian woman, and the fatal torture of a Russian soldier whose body was blown up with a TM-62 mine to stage a Ukrainian drone strike.
Verified Deception & Technical/Medical Contradictions:
- Collapse of the 'March 2023 Moral Awakening' Alibi Against Voluntary Officer School at Molkino (2025) & Contract Signing (01.01.2026) ([15:05]–[16:08] vs [31:06]–[34:45], [38:19]): Claims he wanted no part in the war since spring 2023, yet conceals until minute 31 that in early 2025 he voluntarily attended a 2-month officer course at Molkino ('because officers refuse to join the 88th Brigade'), took command of a platoon, personally trained assault replacements in occupied Soledar, signed an RF MoD contract on 01.01.2026, and at [38:19] still calls himself 'an ordinary soldier'.
- Active Complicity in Concealing the Murder of a 60+ Civilian Woman in Kirove / Sviato-Pokrovske ([12:15]–[15:02], [21:15]–[22:20]): Despite being a commissioned officer leading the two-man clearing element, shifts sole blame for gunning down an elderly civilian woman in a black sheepskin coat outside her home onto his subordinate 'Tsygan', while admitting he commanded the yard search, reported to Battalion Commander 'Frank', and personally dragged the victim's corpse by the legs into a garage and left her unburied.
- Callsign Shift on the Tortured Soldier ('Lekar' vs 'Veles') & Participation in the Soledar Officer Cover-Up ([25:01]–[31:55]): Names the Luhansk contract soldier beaten blue to death with an 18-mm steel rebar stuffed inside a plastic water pipe as 'Lekar' at [26:09], then switches the victim's callsign to 'Veles' at [29:26]; admits attending the officer huddle with Company Commander 'Titanik' and Deputy 'Aginskiy' where they hid the corpse for 2 days in the basement beneath the Soledar swimming pool before blowing it up with a TM-62 anti-tank mine to report a fake Ukrainian UAV hit.
- Reflexive 'Loyal to Putin' Declaration Right After Admitting Bucha, Mariupol, and POW Executions ([18:58], [36:58], [51:52]–[53:15]): Moments after acknowledging Russia's razing of Bakhmut and Mariupol and war crimes in Bucha, blurts out 'Loyal' when asked his attitude toward Putin for VKR FSB filtration records, then hides behind his wife ('No wonder my wife dislikes him').
Concealed Facts & Interviewer Blind Spots:
- Direct Evidentiary Testimony of Systematic Executions of Ukrainian POWs in the 88th Brigade in 2023 & July 2026 ([05:22]–[08:30], [34:56]–[36:08]): Exposes personal radio orders by 88th Brigade Commander 'Kashtan' and 3rd Battalion Commander 'Dok' near Klishchiivka to execute two captured AFU soldiers (one wounded 300, one unarmed) after trench clearing by the 9th Company and Akhmat, plus a company formation in Soledar on 21–22.07.2026 where Company Commander 'Titanik' screened a two-part video of the brigade's Separate Assault Company executing 5 prone unarmed Ukrainian POWs with orders to 'follow their example and take zero prisoners'.
- Disposable Junior-Officer 'Waypoint Beacons' & Friendly-Confusion Skirmish Mistaking AFU's 23rd Brigade for Russia's 123rd Brigade ([38:52]–[46:35]): Reveals how junior officers are stationed in foxholes between Zvanivka and Orikhovatka/Yurkivka solely to type next coordinates into passing riflemen's phones; recounts how on 23.08.2026 he and partner 'Cherkes' encountered soldiers of Ukraine's 23rd Assault/Mechanized Brigade (callsign 'Bilorus') at dusk, mistook their shout '23rd!' for Russia's neighboring 123rd Brigade and let them pass into the Russian rear — earning a profane tirade from Bn Cdr 'Frank' over the 'Sever' comms hub before 'Cherkes' was eliminated and Tumanov captured on 25.08.2026 alongside 'Lun' and 'Adik'.
- Russian FNS Tax Registry Verification of the Tumanov Family Anchor in Sarkel & Wife Anastasiya's Silence ([02:27], [10:12]–[11:35], [53:18]): Family ties in Sarkel settlement, Tsimlyansky District, Rostov Oblast are corroborated via Russian FNS EGRIP (`IFNS 6137`) through his brother Aleksey Valeryevich Tumanov (`TIN 613700572805`, `OGRNIP 307613731600013`); wife Anastasiya receives Zolkin's proof-of-life message (delivered checkmarks) but refuses to answer out of fear of FSB reprisals.
POW INTERVIEW FORENSICS & WAR-CRIMES EVIDENTIARY AUDIT (CASE #5: JUNIOR OFFICER IVAN VALERYEVICH TUMANOV, 88TH SEPARATE MOTOR RIFLE BRIGADE RF — POW EXECUTIONS, MURDER OF AN ELDERLY CIVILIAN IN KIROVE, AND TM-62 MINE COVER-UP OF A TORTURED RUSSIAN SOLDIER IN SOLEDAR)
Primary Broadcast & Registry Verification:
- Source Broadcast: Interview by Volodymyr Zolkin (
@VolodymyrZolkin) — *'Shot an Elderly Woman in an Occupied Village. Beat Their Own Soldier to Death.'* - Published:
2026-10-13| Duration:55:11(1,699timecoded Innertube utterances) + Russian Federal Tax Service (egrul.nalog.ru,IFNS 6137Tsimlyansky District, Rostov Oblast) verification as of30.10.2026. - Capture Contour: Captured on
25.08.2026together with two subordinates ('Lun'and'Adik') between Orikhovatka and Yurkivka (Kramatorsk District, Donetsk Oblast) by an assault team of Ukraine's 23rd Separate Assault / Mechanized Brigade ([41:01],[43:17],[47:45]–[48:35],[53:55]).
1. SUBJECT IDENTIFICATION & REGISTRY VERIFICATION MATRIX
| Parameter | Interrogation Testimony (With Exact Timecodes) | OSINT & Russian FNS Registry Verification |
|---|---|---|
| Full Name & Rank | Ivan Valeryevich Tumanov ([02:18]), commissioned junior officer (platoon commander, [01:18], [31:06]–[31:55], [39:35]). | Withholds his own callsign on camera while mapping the full command callsign hierarchy of the 88th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade ('Kashtan', 'Dok', 'Frank', 'Titanik', 'Aginskiy', 'Igla', 'Byk', 'Tsygan'). |
| Date & Place of Birth | 11.01.1987 (age 39, [02:20]), Sarkel settlement, Tsimlyansky District, Rostov Oblast, RF ([02:27]). | Verified settlement (~1,300 residents) on the Tsimlyansk Reservoir. Family anchor in Sarkel confirmed via Russian FNS EGRIP (IFNS 6137): brother Aleksey Valeryevich Tumanov (TIN 613700572805, OGRNIP 307613731600013). |
| Pre-War Occupation & Family | Long-haul & international freight truck driver ([02:46]–[02:55], [17:58]). Wife Anastasiya ([10:12], [53:13]), mother ([02:56]). | Anastasiya receives Zolkin's voice message confirming her husband is alive ([53:18]) but refuses to respond within the 30-minute window out of fear of FSB monitoring ([10:42]–[11:25]). |
| Russian Military Unit | 3rd Motor Rifle Battalion (9th Coy) -> Platoon Cdr, 2nd Motor Rifle Battalion, 88th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade ('Severny Veter', Military Unit 26388), 3rd Guards Combined Arms Army, Southern MD ([05:30], [06:05], [12:11], [31:18]). | Mobilized in one day on 31.01.2023 via Persianovka range ([03:22]); wounded near Spirne (Mar 2023); given 2-year suspended AWOL sentence (Aug 2023); fought at Klishchiivka, Yakovlivka, Pereizne, Zvanivka, Kirove (Sviato-Pokrovske), Soledar; graduated Molkino officer course (Jan–Mar 2025); signed contract 01.01.2026 ([34:10]); captured 25.08.2026. |
2. COMMAND HIERARCHY OF THE 88TH BRIGADE (UNIT 26388) & DOCUMENTED WAR CRIMES (ART. 438 CRIMINAL CODE OF UKRAINE)
- Execution of Two Captured AFU Soldiers Near Klishchiivka (
[05:22]–[08:30]): During a joint trench assault by five soldiers of the 9th Company (3rd Bn) and five Akhmat fighters, Russian troops captured a dugout holding two Ukrainian defenders (one wounded300, one unarmed who surrendered). Monitoring live drone video alongside 3rd Battalion Commander 'Dok', 88th Brigade Commander 'Kashtan' shouted over radio: *'Take nobody alive, shoot them all!'*, and 'Dok' relayed the order to 'zero' both prisoners on the spot. - Murder of an Elderly Civilian Woman (60+) in Kirove / Sviato-Pokrovske (
[00:00]–[00:25],[11:45]–[15:02],[21:15]–[22:20]): Advancing from Pereizne and Zvanivka into Kirove, Tumanov led assault rifleman 'Tsygan' into a residential yard where an elderly woman in a black sheepskin coat stood outside her house. 'Tsygan' fired a 2–3 round burst point-blank, killing her instantly; Tumanov reported the killing over radio to 2nd Battalion Commander 'Frank' (who ordered them to keep moving) and helped drag her body by the legs into a garage without burial. - Fatal Torture of a Luhansk Contract Soldier & TM-62 Mine Staging in Soledar (
[24:45]–[30:55]): Inside the underground company base beneath the Soledar swimming pool, Company Commander 'Titanik', Deputy 'Aginskiy', and platoon commanders 'Igla' and 'Byk' beat a newly arrived Luhansk soldier (referred to as 'Lekar' at[26:09]and 'Veles' at[29:26]) using a plastic water pipe packed with 18-mm steel rebar. After the soldier turned blue and died beside a drying cabinet, the officers hid the corpse in the basement for 2 days, carried it upstairs, detonated a TM-62 anti-tank mine against the body, and filed a falsified combat report with Bn Cdr 'Frank' claiming a Ukrainian FPV drone killed him while taking out trash. - Brigade Screening of Video Executing Five Prone Ukrainian POWs (
21–22.07.2026,[34:56]–[36:08]): Five weeks before Tumanov's capture, Company Commander 'Titanik' assembled the company in Soledar and played a two-part video recorded by the brigade's Separate Assault Company (OShR) showing a Russian soldier executing five unarmed Ukrainian POWs lying face-down on the ground after a radio check, explicitly ordering the troops: *'Take your example from them — take zero prisoners.'*
3. KEY FORENSIC CONTRADICTIONS ACROSS THE 12-POINT MATRIX
- Voluntary Officer Promotion at Molkino Demolishes His '2023 Anti-War Awakening' (
[15:05]vs.[31:06]–[34:45],[38:19]): Tumanov claims he opposed the war ever since his March 2023 wound at Spirne, yet conceals for half the interview that in early 2025 he volunteered for a 2-month officer commissioning course at Molkino, commanded a platoon training assault troops in Soledar, signed a military contract on01.01.2026, and still tries to pass himself off at[38:19]as *'an ordinary soldier'*. - Mistaking Ukraine's 23rd Brigade for Russia's 123rd Brigade (
[38:52]–[46:35]): Deployed as a human 'waypoint beacon' in a pit between Orikhovatka and Yurkivka to manually enter offline coordinates into passing assault riflemen's phones, Tumanov and his partner'Cherkes'challenged an approaching Ukrainian patrol of the 23rd Brigade (callsign'Bilorus') on the night of23.08.2026, misheard their reply *'23rd!'* as Russia's neighboring 123rd Brigade, and let them walk straight into the Russian rear — leading to'Cherkes'being killed during morning clearing and Tumanov surrendering on25.08.2026. - VKR FSB Filtration Reflex (
[51:52]–[53:15]): Even after implicating his entire brigade command in war crimes, Tumanov reflexively answers *'Loyal'* when asked his view of Putin before deflecting onto his wife.
