Court overturns verdict of Nalchik soldier convicted of intentionally blowing himself up with mines
An appellate court in Kabarda–Balkaria has overturned a decision by a Nalchik military court to sentence contract soldier Nikolai Khozumov to 10 years in a penal colony on charges of fraud and evading military service by simulating illness. According to the investigation, Khozumov had repeatedly detonated mines to wound himself in order to obtain financial compensation for his injuries.
The appellate court overturned the verdict, announced on 12 November 2025, citing procedural violations: Khozumov had not been allowed to participate in the hearing with a lawyer of his choosing. Khozumov has been sent back to pre-trial detention awaiting a new trial.
Investigators believe that Khozumov acted as part of a group to stage combat injuries. According to the prosecution, he carried out four self-inflicted mine explosions ‘to create the appearance of injury’. These incidents, as stated in court documents, occurred on 14 November and 30 December 2023, as well as on 15 February and 8 March 2024.
At the same time, the court of first instance in November 2025 established that, while in the territory of the Russian-occupied Ukrainian region of Donetsk, Khozumov, as part of an organised group, committed self-harm using improvised explosive devices on six occasions.
After each of these incidents, Khozumov sought medical assistance and obtained documents confirming his injuries. These certificates, according to the case materials, entitled him to compensation payments provided for military personnel who have been wounded.
In total, according to the court, Khozumov received about ₽13 million ($150,000). Of this amount, ₽3 million ($35,000) were paid for each of four cases classified as severe injuries, and an additional ₽500,000 ($6,000) for less serious injuries. He was also charged with evading his duties: investigators considered that his hospitalisation in March 2024, which lasted about two weeks, was unjustified.
In addition to his sentence, under civil claims, ₽12 million ($140,000) were recovered from him in favour of the Russian Ministry of Defence and a further ₽1 million ($12,000) in favour of a military hospital.
The appellate court later overturned the verdict, citing a violation of the right to defence. The ruling states that the court refused to postpone the hearing despite the defendant’s relatives having retained a lawyer who was unable to attend at the scheduled time. Instead, the court appointed a state lawyer. The appellate court found this to be a procedural violation and ordered a retrial.
The appellate ruling also outlines other aspects of the case. In particular, the defence insisted on changing the preventive measure of pre-trial detention for Khozumov. In the appeal, the lawyer argued that the court of first instance had not presented sufficient evidence that the defendant might try to evade justice or obstruct the investigation.
The defence pointed to the suspect’s permanent residence, employment, positive character references, and lack of a criminal record. The lawyer also stated that the foreign trips cited by the court were related to business activities. However, the appellate court found these arguments unconvincing and upheld the measure of pre-trial detention.
As OC Media has discovered, before going off to war, Khozumov lived in Khanty-Mansiysk and was a supporting actor at the Solntse Theatre of the Ob-Ugric Peoples.
