Many of those who started "Russian winter" there were destroyed in the self-proclaimed "DPR" and "LPR” during the war in Donbass. Some of them were outright hoodlums who got power and resources in the wake of the chaos and did not want to tolerate any other power. And some were so-called - ideological who believed the Soviet anti-Ukrainian mythology about Bandera, and decided that the authoritarian and oligarchic Russia would provide them with more social justice than the national oligarchic Ukraine ... Illusion, for which these people paid the price not only of their lives but also the blood of tens of thousands of countrymen. Any outlaws always end even with more concentration of power. It is easier for Moscow to deal with the specific relevant performers and not to play democracy with dozens of ideological and dangerous idiots.
In the LPR, for example, all the famous commanders of the so-called "first wave" have been destroyed - the majority of them were killed and less obstinate were expelled from the "republic."
In the so-called "DPR" warlords and "ideological" were neutralized not not massively and loudly. However, as Igor Plotnitsky recently stated "if you do not write about it, it does not mean that such things do not exist in the DPR"… Alexander Zakharchenko just prefers to do it without theatrical effects. However, Donetsk militants showed violent showdowns trying to establish control over financial flows and redistribute the spheres of influence.
Most of these cases were a kind of demonstration killings.
This process is not over. The most recent evidence of this is the murder of assistant head of the LPR Igor Plotnitsky Dmitriy Kargaev and one of the authors of the "Declaration of Independence of the "DPR" Maxim Lakomov. Both of them died in March 2016.
Kargaev is known to be protege of former Lugansk governor Vladimir Pristyuk and he was deputy head of the "LPR head administration" by November 2014. According to sources of OstroV, assassination on Kargaev may be caused by conflict of business interests with "Minister of Health of the LPR" Larisa Ayrapetyan.
Maxim Lakomov was called one of the ideologists of the "Russian Spring" in Donbass. The so-called "Ministry of Information of the DPR" was created under his direct leadership. On March 17th a grenade exploded in a room of the former Donetsk National Technical University where Lakomov was. No people responsible for his death have been found yet.
Both Kargaev and Lakomov become the latest victim in the fight of the new "elite" of Donbass for the resources that give power. There will be more and there were more ...
Alexander Bednov is commander of the Batman rapid response team, Defense Minister of the "LPR"
On January 1st, 2015, motorcade of the authoritative field commander of the "LPR" Alexander Bednov (Batman) was fired at in the area of Lutugino in Luhansk region. He had no chances to survive – motorcade was blew up by BMP, grenade launchers, small arms and rocket infantry flame throwers. Only mangled cars and burnt corpses were left on the road.
One of the Bednov’s companions with the call sign "Plastun" said it was a contract killing and accused the head of the "LPR" Plotnitsky:
"People weren’t offered to surrender, they were offered nothing. They were burnt by thermobars. The same awaits me ... So, if there is another such "accident", then all should know how it happened. That’s all done by Plotnitsky,"- said Bednov’s colleague.
Batman was an active opponent of the agreements in Minsk and refused to take part in the exchange of prisoners. According to unconfirmed information, he planned a mass revolt against Plotnitsky in late December in 2014.
After Bednov’s death his unit was disbanded and his closest associates were captured. Batman’s militants in the "LPR" were accused of humiliating treatment of prisoners, torture and looting.
Alexey Mozgovoy - the leader of the Prizrak battalion of the "People's Militia of the LPR"
On May 23rd, 2015 Prizrak battalion commander, once one of the most famous leaders of the militants in eastern Ukraine Alexey Mozgovoy died. He was traveling from Alchevsk to Luhansk when the car was fired at with machine guns and other weapons. As a result of the assassination Mozgovoy was killed. His spokesman, two guards and a driver also died.
Mozgovoy himself said before his death that people in Luhansk wanted to kill him. He did not hide that he had bitter relationship with the leader of the "LPR".
Despite the fact that the Ukrainian Teni partisan group took the responsibility for the elimination of Prizrak soldiers, the majority of experts and local residents believe that Plotnitsky or the Russian special services were involved in the murder of Mozgovoy.
In his comments on Mozgovoy’s death, Plotnitsky declared that hadn’t had conflicts with him. He accused Ukrainian security services of Prizrak’s death.
"The death of Alexander Mozgovoy is a great loss for us personally and for the "republic". He really was a national leader followed by a lot of people, many of them adhered to his position, although they were not always consistent with our common understanding but that’s why there are different points of view. But we always understood each other, stood shoulder to shoulder and fought together. Today investigation is taking place, the prosecutor's office has already held ballistic examination. We hope that we’ll finally establish exactly whether we have prospect to know exactly who did it. We realize that it is beneficial only to Ukraine," - said Plotnitsky then.
Pavel Dremov – a Cossack Ataman of Grand Don Army
On December 12th, 2015, as a result of the assassination commander of the 6th Cossack regiment Pavel Dremov was killed. Militant died in the explosion of his car near Irmino.
It is known that Dremov had a long-lasting conflict with Igor Plotnitsky. The militant became widely known due to the video in which he did not hesitate in expressions criticizing other separatists, especially the "LPR" leaders.
Dremov accused Plotnitsky and his entourage in one of his speeches of "muscling in on" apartments and cars in the "LPR", stealing coal and selling it to Ukraine. Dremov counted 164 stolen trains with coaland he allegedly had evidence documents.
Dremov directly accused Plotnitsky of working for the interests of the "host of Luhansk region" - Alexander Yefremov. In his opinion, the most senior officials in occupied Luhansk are old loyal members of the "regional" team. In addition, he said that 90% of humanitarian aid coming from Russia were not distributed among the population of the "LPR" and were immediately resold.
Yevgeniy Faynitsky - "ex-Minister of Fuel and Energy of the DPR"
Yevgeniy Faynitsky worked as "Minister of Fuel and Energy of the "DNR" in late 2014 and early 2015. "In February last year he was detained by representatives of the "MSS of the DPR " allegedly for espionage. The materials submitted by the applicant to the prosecution bodies of Ukraine have an official answer of acting "prosecutor General" of the DPR "Andrey Pevtsov stating that Yevgeniy Faynitsky was arrested for "... pro-Ukrainian, Bendera, nationalist position."
Moscow consultant of the "DPR" government Roman Manekin claimed that the reason for Faynitsky’s arrest was sharp rise in price on fuel on the territory of the self-proclaimed "DPR". This was allegedly due to the arrest of oil tankers on the Russian-Ukrainian border. Then petrol stations of the "republic" were left without fuel.
A few months after the arrest there appeared information in the media that the "ex-Minister of Fuel and Energy" of the DPR" was dead. As noted by the Prosecutor's Office of Donetsk region, his brother filed an application to the law enforcement authorities of Ukraine that Faynitsky had been brutally killed. His death certificate was published later.
Eduard Gilazov "Ryazan" - the leader of one of the subversive groups of the "DPR"
Russian mercenary Eduard Gilazova nicknamed "Ryazan" was killed on July 27th, 2015 but the death became known only one month later. The circumstances of the death were carefully hidden but, according to the testimony of his relatives, he was shot by "theirs".
Gilazov wrote that he had been "leaked" in one of the social networks shortly before his death,. According to his colleagues, the Russian fighter didn’t share anything with "like-minded" and was quietly shot.
"Details of his death are not yet known to me, there is only speculation and the feeling that the death of Eduard Gilazov is kept quiet for some reasons. I know that the commander of the subversive group was killed on July 27th. "Ryazan"," - reported one of the separatist online resources.
"Ryazan" is known to come to fight in Donbass at the beginning of hostilities. At first he was among the other Russian "volunteers" who went to Slavyansk. And then he was involved in fighting in various localities of the region occupied by militants.
Chemodan, "Novorossia", Russia
Not all unwanted by "authorities of the republic" have been physically destroyed. Some of them - voluntarily and not - decided to go to Russia. Apparently, they did not want to exchange the political ambitions and business interests in the "young republics" for life.
Alexander Boroday
In the summer of 2014 "the Prime Minister of" the self-proclaimed "DPR" Russian Alexander Boroday left Donetsk for Russia. According to the separatists, he urgently needed to see how Ukrainian refugees are accepted there. He didn’t return from his business trip and preferred to stay at home. Boroday’s vacant position was taken by Alexander Zakharchenko.
Igor Girkin ("Strelkov")
Former "Minister of Defense" of the "DPR" also went from Ukraine to Russia in the summer of 2014. It is known that he, in fact, took responsibility for starting the war in Donbass. He stated this in his interview to Zavtra newspaper.
"That was me who triggered the war. If our unit hadn’t crossed the border, everything would have ended as in Kharkov or Odessa. There would have been a few tens of dead, burnt and arrested. That would have been an end. Our unit was a little flywheel of the war that is still going on," - he said.
The militant stood out with that were then clearly at odds with the official propaganda of the "republics". For example, he publicly stated that Russia was fighting against Ukraine.
"We are already at war. They can hide our heads in the sand, but the country which sends volunteers as volunteers are going to fight and there is a place where they can fight, where they will be given weapons, where they receive ammunition - it is a belligerent country,"- he pointed out.
Previously mentioned Alexander Boroday said that Girkin had been removed because he "has reached his limits." And Boroday said in his interview with Washington Post that the ex-defense Minister was made to leave Donbass "using armed guards".
Valeriy Bolotov
Information about resignation of the head of the self-proclaimed "DPR" appeared in the morning on August 14th, 2014. Separatists said that he had been simply "leaked" and asked to leave "in an amicable way". Bolotov explained his unexpected resignation in his farewell address to the nation of the "LPR" by physical inability to carry out his duties. Valeriy Bolotov made his statement by reading text from the video souffleur.
"Situation" in Luhansk People's Republic" is complex. Kiev khunta sent a huge number of troops and equipment. Avengers are deliberately destroying infrastructure. It's no longer a secret that we are on the verge of a humanitarian catastrophe. In these circumstances the leaders of the "republic" should work on the edge," - read "the head of the LPR".
Igor Plotnistky became "the head of the LPR" instead of him. Now Bolotov is in Moscow.
Nikolay Kozitsin
He headed the so-called "Cossack national guard" of the "Grand Don Army". Since the summer of 2014 the headquarters of the Kozitsin’s gang based in Antratsyt. His Cossacks controlled a large part of the "LPR". As a result of an armed clash with Plotnitsky’s militant groups, several associates of Kozitsin were killed. After this incident, he called the self-proclaimed "LPR" to be armed gangs whose members are killing, robbing and raping people.
"Sharing movable and immovable, embezzling. That’s what the LPR is doing today. Nothing is built, nothing is done, "- said Kozitsin.
"They are killing, robbing and raping people. They are robbing banks accusing Cossacks," - he said.
After many threats, he fled to Russia on "holiday" ...
Ruslan Biryukov, OstroV