A Russian involved in the murder of civilians in the Kyiv region has taken a high-ranking position in Russia.

Russian soldier Nursultan Mussagaleyev, who took part in the occupation of a part of the Kyiv region in early 2022, has assumed the position of acting Minister of Regional and Information Policy of the Orenburg region in Russia.

This was reported by the head of the Russian region.

Russian propaganda has repeatedly made Mussagaleyev a hero in its narratives, and after his involvement in the invasion of Ukraine, he was awarded the title of "hero."

In Ukraine, Mussagaleyev, along with other Russians, participated in so-called "cleansing" operations, during one of which a civilian man was detained while passing through an enemy checkpoint.

Mussagaleyev ordered his abduction after photos of building materials were found on the man's phone, leading the Russians to suspect that he was helping to construct fortifications for the Ukrainian military near Kyiv. The man was taken to a forest near Dmytrivka, where he was first brutally tortured and then shot on Mussagaleyev's orders, with his body left at the murder site.

The deceased was named Ivan Fitzner. His partner told journalists that he was trying to evacuate them from the occupation when their vehicle was stopped by Russians. They took Ivan and ordered him to wait for two hours to be released, but after an hour told the entire group to continue. The occupiers promised that once they finished "checking him," they would put him in the first vehicle going with civilians.

After that, Ivan did not make contact. His body remained in the forest strip and was discovered more than nine months later during an investigative experiment with a Russian prisoner of war.

It should be noted that the officer awarded by Putin may have kidnapped and tortured a civilian woman in the Mykolaiv region.