Former policeman from Brest: There are Russian army mercenaries among terrorists

Having been in separatists’ captivity, Mikalaj Jakubovich told about his kidnappers.

According to him, it is the Donetsk branch of the Oplot organization that captures people in Donbas. At a certain point they separated from the Kharkiv organization and now call themselves the Russian Orthodox Army.

This come from a Glavkom’s interview with an advisor to the National Security and Defense Council’s secretary, a former policeman from Brest and the commander of the 28th squadron of Maidan’s self-defense Mikalaj Jakubovich.

“A Batkivshchyna activist, who worked for the electoral team, was kidnapped in Makeevka on 1 May. I learnt about that from the people I know. I decided to help. I went to the local administration, spoke to the gunmen. I said that this person had done nothing wrong to them, tried to get this guy released. However, it did not work. On the next day this guy called me himself and said that he was being released. I got into a car and went to meet him at the agreed place, I just wanted to speak to him about what had happened. As I arrived, I got immediately rounded up by armed people, who came from everywhere. Of course, I did not think I would get captured. The people, who held me, introduced themselves as the Russian Orthodox Army”, - Jakubovich told.

According to him, it is a Donetsk Oplot branch, which at a certain point separated from Kharkiv’s Oplot and now they call themselves the Russian Orthodox Army.

“They have about 100 activists. There is no single leader. They are mostly Ukrainians. At least I did not see foreigners among them. One of the activists is a Krasnoarmeysk resident known under a nickname Mongol, he is now being identified. There are many former army men among them, who were at a certain time mercenaries with Russian army and fought in Chechnya and Transnistria”, - Jakubovich emphasized.

They asked, why I had come to the meeting, what information I sought. According to the squadron commander, he was beaten up, taken to different locations several times, but released in 4 days in exchange for one of the terrorists.

“I explain it with a number of factors. Starting from the cooperation at the level of NSDC and self-defense, and up to the interested people in the gunmen camp, who agreed to the exchange”, - Jakubovich clarified the situation.