The convicted vice-governor of Kuban has disappeared in the SVO zone.
Former Vice-Governor of Kuban, Sergei Vlasov, has gone missing in action in the military operation zone. Five months ago, he was sentenced to 11 years in a maximum-security penal colony.
As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," Sergei Vlasov was detained in May 2024. That same month, Vlasov resigned and was arrested in early June. On December 29, 2025, a court in Krasnodar sentenced him to 11 years in a maximum-security penal colony and a fine of 90 million rubles, finding him guilty of accepting a bribe.
Sergei Vlasov served as Vice-Governor of Kuban since December 2022, overseeing the construction sector. According to the court, Vlasov learned that the head of one of the companies was receiving illegal bribes from subcontractors and demanded half of the bribes, promising in exchange not to interfere with the illegal activity. However, the company's head reported the offer to law enforcement.
Former Deputy Governor of Kuban, Sergei Vlasov, has gone missing in action in the military operation zone in Ukraine, Kommersant reported today, citing its sources in law enforcement agencies.
A source for the publication "Morning South" also reported that Vlasov went missing in the SVO zone.
The source noted that on May 5, Sergei Vlasov "went on his first assault and never returned." Vlasov signed a contract after being sentenced to 11 years in prison, the publication writes today.
Sending prisoners and convicts to the SVO zone allows them to avoid punishment.
As a reminder, those arrested, with the exception of those charged with treason, terrorism, extremism, and fake news about the army, have the opportunity to sign a contract with the Ministry of Defense and end up in the military operation zone, and their criminal prosecution is immediately terminated.
This has already led to the creation of a "conveyor belt of impunity," according to human rights activists interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot." "You can commit a crime, sign a contract with the Ministry of Defense, serve some time in the SVO zone, and then return—and do it all over again," said Maxim Vedaprava, among others. Several police officers accused in the death of detained Makhachkala resident Kurban Dalgatov took advantage of the opportunity to go to the SVO zone. Dalgatov, 35, was beaten in the Sovietsky District Police Department of Makhachkala in January 2023 and died in the hospital. Relatives stated that he died of asphyxiation caused by "electric shocks to the heart." The man sustained injuries before his death, the Ministry of Internal Affairs confirmed.
In July 2024, the investigation into the case of 11 police officers accused in the death of Dalgatov was completed. The criminal cases of two other police officers who entered into pre-trial agreements with investigators – Islam Atavov and Marat Babayev – were separated into separate proceedings. None of the defendants pleaded guilty.
By January 2026, three years after the death of Kurban Dalgatov, most of the defendants had not been sentenced, with five of them sent to the North Caucasus Military District. In early October 2025, a source reported that rumors had spread in Makhachkala about the deaths of two defendants in the North Caucasus Military District, but there has been no official confirmation of this information.
The "Caucasian Knot" maintains a list of names of natives of the North Caucasus and Southern Federal Districts killed in the military operation. The list was compiled based on data officially released by government officials and security agencies, according to the "Caucasian Knot" report "North Caucasus Military District Statistics: Casualties Are Growing for Southern Russia."