InformNapalm identified the tankmen of the 136th Motorized Rifle Brigade (MRB) of Russian Army, who took part in hostilities in Donbas in the fall of 2014.

PREFACE

InformNapalm volunteer intelligence community received from one of our readers data of an officer of the 136th MRB (military unit 63354, stationed Buinaksk, Dagestan, Southern Military District of the Russian Armed Forces) who took part in a Ukrainian deployment. This became a starting point for the new OSINT investigation. Based on the latest information and previously obtained data, it was possible to establish a number of tankmen of this military unit, which in autumn 2014, as part of the T-90 tank unit, invaded Ukraine.

InformNapalm was the first information outlet that in October 2014 tracked and described the transfer of Russian tankmen of the 136th MRB from their permanent station to the borderline part of the Rostov oblast and subsequent invasion of Ukraine:

• Ukrainian photo sessions of Russian tankmen of 136th MRB10/19/2014
• Russian T-90 Tanks of the 136th Motorized Rifle Brigade in Luhansk Oblast 10/20/2014

This topic was actively picked up Ukrainian media and bloggers, who went on doing a series of detailed investigations, backing up the primary findings with new visual georeferenced evidence of the convoys movement. The most valuable follow-up investigation of this topic was made by the blogger sled_vzayt in August 2015.

Whereas our main focus used to be the identification of the military units, their armament and the location of events, today it is time to go deeper into identifying the specific servicemen who participated in the invasion.

Chatterbox

In the chat of the military unit 63354, Dagestan, Buinaksk Dalniy range (136th MRB again) on VK social network we noticed tha activity of one Oksana Rovenskaya (archived profile, photos, contacts) who did a great deal of chatting from July 17, 2015 till May 16, 2016. Among other things, she mentioned being the wife of an officer tankman with the initials “P.Zh.” from that brigade, who went on a deployment to Ukraine. Also, Oksana boasted photos of her husband’s awards – the anniversary medal 20 Years of the 58th Field Army and the Order of Courage which, according to our observations, in the last 2 years has been mainly issued to the Russian military men participating in the undeclared war against Ukraine.

Piotr Zholudev 

Senior Lieutenant Piotr Zholudev, born May 22, 1986 in Omsk. In 2012 he graduated from the engineering department of the Omsk Tank Engineering Institute. As of 2013 – platoon commander at the tank battalion of the 136th MBR. As of February 2016 – deputy commander of a tank company at the tank battalion, deputy of materiel and maintenance of the tank battalion at the same military unit. He has the status of the combat veteran, was awarded the Order of Courage. Apparently, as part of the tank subunit of his brigade, he participated in the invasion of Ukraine in the fall of 2014, and later was involved in other Ukrainian deployments. Accounts on social networks: VK – 1, VK – 2 (archived profiles 1, 2; photos 2; contacts 1, 2), «ОК (archived profile, photos, contacts). Cell phone: +789634145203.

Other participants of the Donbas campaign from the tank battalion of the 136th Brigade

Vitaly Marakasov (Shpynov)

In order to find and identify the remaining servicemen of the 136th MRB, who took part in the invasion of Ukraine in the fall of 2014, we had to revert to our first publication, in particular to Vitaly Marakasov, who exposed the tanks of his brigade in Luhansk Oblast. Russian intelligence services removed the source of the leak on VK social network, but the page was cached, however not completely. Not only was Marakasov-Shpynov entered on Myrotvorets Center database, he kept an active account on ОК (archived profile, contacts). Despite the modesty and scarcity of the active account, Marakasov’s contacts upon some tweaking yielded curious results which are worth relating to our readers. In this context, there was a noteworthy comment to a T-90 tank photo from February 10, 2015 made by one A. Rezun “You are no longer a tankman”. Apparently, the military career of Marakasov as a tankman which started in 2014 was cut short by this leak.

Alexey Rezun

Contract serviceman of the 136th MRB, born on June 30, 1986 in Stavropol. In 2011 he graduated from the Gukovo Institute of Economics and Law (a branch of the Rostov University). Military service: conscript – the 33rd Mountain Motorized Rifle Brigade (military unit 22179, Maykop, Adygea) of the Southern Military District in 2011; contract – 175th Control Brigade of the Southern Military District (military unit 01957, Rostov-on-Don) 2011-2012; since the spring of 2014 was spotted in the 136th Brigade. Social network accounts: VK (archived profile , photos , contatcs) – inactive, ОК – active, but with restricted access. Cell phone: +79614859133.

Identified in the photograph of Marakasov from the training range near Volgograd, where in the summer of 2014, he was trained together with other new contract soldiers before the Ukraine deployment.

Mikhail Lebedev

Contract serviceman of the 136th MRB, born on January 28, 1991 in Zlatoust city, Chelyabinsk Oblast. Social network accounts: VK (archived profile , photos , contacts) – inactive, ОК – active, but with restricted access.

Identified in the photograph of Marakasov during the period of the invasion of Ukraine in the autumn of 2014.

Baldan Dorzhu-Belek

Former contract soldier of the tank battalion of the 136th MRB, born on February 3, 1986 in the town of Samagaltay, Tes-Khem Raion of the Republic of Tuva. Personal number МТ-303809. He did his conscript service in the Russian Armed Forces from May 29, 2005 to June 27, 2007, the last contract was from September 05, 2013. As of the end of August 2017 he was dismissed from the ranks of the Russian Armed Forces for failure to fulfill the terms of the contract (he had less than a month to go). At the time of his dismissal, he was listed as a driver-mechanic in a platoon of sound ranging, artillery reconnaissance battery of an artillery battalion of an artillery brigade (presumably 291st Artillery Brigade, permanent station in Troitskaya village, Ingushetia). Apparently, he was transferred from the 136th Brigade to artillery in 2015. By the decree of Vladimir Putin of January 20, 2015 he was awarded the Order of Courage #76938. Social network accounts: VK (archived profile, photos, contacts). Cell phone numbers: +789293164827, +789280467097.

He was identified in the photo of Marakasov during the Ukraine invasion period in the autumn of 2014. Among his contacts, is the aforementioned Senior Lieutenant Zholudev.

Mikhail Nekleyonov

Contract serviceman of the 136th MRB, born in 1987 in Kopeysk, Chelyabinsk Oblast. In February 2015, he was awarded medal of Suvorov(this award has been handed out massively to participants of the proxy war against Ukraine). Social network accounts: VK (archived profile, photos, contacts), OK (archived profile, photos, contacts).

Nekleyonov keeps in his album a photo from Ukraine invasion period in the autumn of 2014 from the same series as that of Marakasov. 

Mikhail Chichak

Contract serviceman of the 136th MRB, born in 1990 in Lipetsk. In December 2015 he was awarded a Medal of Suvorov; he commented the photo with it: “for combat service”. Social network accounts: VK (archived profile, photos, contacts), OK – 1 (archived profile, photos, contacts), OK –2 (archived profile, photos, contacts).

He was identified in the photo of Marakasov during the Ukraine invasion period in the autumn of 2014. He keeps in his albums a series of photographs of the same period.

Alexander Smirnov 

Contract serviceman of the 136th MRB, born on April 9, 1985 in the town of Rtishchevo, Saratov Oblast. Graduated from the Saratov State Technical University in 2007. In 2007-2010 he served in the military unit 32411, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Uzhursky Rajon, Solnechny Closed Administrative-Territorial Unit. Social network accounts: VK (archived profile, photos, contacts).

He was identified in the photo of Marakasov during the Ukraine invasion period in the autumn of 2014.

Stas Aurbiev

Contract serviceman of the 136th MRB, born on July 5, 1991 in the Stavropol Krai. He studied at Sochi State University. Social network accounts: VK (archived profile , photos , contatcs), ОК (profile with restricted access).

He was identified in the photo of Marakasov during the Ukraine invasion period in the autumn of 2014.

BONUS

In addition to the above-mentioned investigation subjects, we identified other servicemen of the 136th MRB, who went on the Ukrainian deployments.

Andrey Bavarov

Contract serviceman of the reconnaissance battalion of the 136th MRB, born in 1988 in Volgograd. He studied at Sochi State University. Social network accounts: VK (archived profile , photos , contatcs), ОК (cached profile).

In Bavarov’s album there was discovered the photo from the winter deployment to Ukraine of the scouts of the 136th MRB, which featured in the InformNapalm publication of February 3, 2015 titled Tracking Down A Scout From The 136th Brigade.

Vyacheslav Biche-Ool

Serviceman-contractor of the 136th Brigade, was born on December 13, 1985, from the city of Kyzyl of the Republic of Tuva. We have not found Biche-Ool on the above photos of his colleagues. However, in his album we found a picture with an Order of Courage posted on June 15, 2016, which suggests his participation in a Ukrainian deployment. Moreover, among the contacts of Bich-Ool there is his fellow countryman and army buddy, the holder of the same award, Baldan Dorzhu-Belek and other subjects of our investigation (Lebedev, Marakasov). Social network accounts: VK (archived profile, photos, contacts).

Thus, in this investigation we identified 10 servicemen of the 136th Brigade, who took part in the proxy war of the Kremlin against Ukraine. We deem it important the international community knows the war criminals and the truth about this despicable war that Russia is waging.

To be continued

This is not the first and probably not the last exposure of the 136th MRB in Ukrainian deployments. Earlier this military unit appeared in seven investigations of our volunteer community:

• Т-90 tanks and Akatsiya self-propelled howitzers of 136th MRB from Dagestan at the border with Ukraine2014-10-07
• Ukrainian photo sessions of Russian tankmen of 136th MRB2014-10-19
• Russian T-90 Tanks of the 136th Motorized Rifle Brigade in Luhansk Oblast 10/20/2014
• Russian Propaganda Bragging about 136th Separate Motor-Rifle Brigade in Debaltseve2015-02-15
• Video on participation of the Russian 136th Motorized Rifle Brigade in the war in Donbas(also watch on youtube) 2015-02-19
• Tracking Down A Scout From The 136th Brigade 2015-02-03
• Photo hunt for Russian Tiger in Donbas2016-09-20

This publication was prepared on the basis of an OSINT investigation by  Irakli Komaxidze in cooperation with Serhiy Pochebula

Translated by Andrii Gryganskyi, edited by Artem Velichko

(CC BY) Information specially prepared for InformNapalm.org site, an active link to the authors and our project is obligatory for any reprint or further use of the material.

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