MOSCOW. June 26 (Interfax) - Damage caused by the Ukrainian Armed Forces in 2022-2023 in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), the Lugansk People's Republic (LPR), and three Russian regions bordering Ukraine exceeds 730 billion rubles, Russian Investigative Committee Deputy Chairman Alexander Fyodorov said.
"Over 70,000 houses and infrastructure facilities have been examined. The damage has been estimated at over 734 billion rubles," Fyodorov said at the St. Petersburg International Legal Forum on Wednesday.
Experts examined properties located in the DPR, LPR, and the Belgorod, Bryansk, and Rostov regions in 2022-2023, he said.
Investigators have opened around 5,000 criminal cases against over 1,000 individuals since 2014, "including with regard to members of Ukraine's military and political leadership, its security agencies, members of nationalist units, and mercenaries," he said.
They have also recorded instances of recruitment of over 3,000 mercenaries from more than 70 countries to fight for Ukraine, he said.
Investigators have forwarded 296 criminal cases against over 400 Ukrainian Armed Forces members and mercenaries to courts, which have handed down 250 sentences on them, including 32 life sentences, Fyodorov said.