Kazakh Teen Sentenced to 12 Years in Russia for Alleged Plans to Fight for Ukraine

On June 25, a Russian court sentenced 19-year-old Almaty resident Turan Ustyugov to 12 years in prison. According to Russian authorities, the young man was planning to join the Ukrainian armed forces. 

The following day, his mother, Elmira Zhanabayeva, spoke to Orda.kz, sharing her son’s story.

Turan Ustyugov was detained by the Russian FSB on October 2, 2024. Authorities claimed his phone contained completed applications to join Ukraine’s Azov Brigade and the Russian Volunteer Corps — both designated terrorist organizations in Russia.

He was charged under articles for “training for the purpose of terrorist activity” and “organizing or participating in a terrorist organization.” The court sentenced him to seven years for the first charge and ten for the second, later combining them into a 12-year term.

Elmira Zhanabayeva insists there were no grounds for such accusations. According to her, her son never underwent training or formally joined any military unit.

Though legally an adult, she described him as a psychologically immature teenager.

He had a difficult childhood, a difficult teenage period. And when he was 15, his father passed away, and it was very difficult for Turan. Also, maybe he lacked my, motherly attention. I have four children, and one of Turan's younger brothers is hard of hearing. I spent a lot of time with him, took him to Russia and China for treatment. Although it seemed to me that I also paid enough attention to the other children, but maybe it was not enough, Elmira said.

Turan, she said, was a strong student, nearly earning a red diploma in finance. Yet his behavior often reflected that of someone younger.

At 16, he stopped allowing himself to be photographed. The few images available show him as a child.

When the full-scale war in Ukraine began, Turan adopted a staunchly pro-Ukrainian stance — something his mother attributes to teenage idealism.

Last year, she began noticing him communicating with strangers online.

At first, he was on VK and chatting with them there. I noticed that he was spending a lot of time there. I told him that I didn't like it. Then these same people moved to a Telegram chat, where there were some bots. I got into one of these chats to understand who Turan was chatting with. And I realized that they were recruiting people for the war there. People were sitting there from different countries, from different regions. 

Though recruitment appeared to favor Ukraine, Elmira isn’t certain who was behind the chats.

I don't know whether it was the Ukrainian special services, or the Russian special services, or just scammers. We can't find the ends now. I showed these chats to the KNB representatives, saying that they were influencing my son's life. But as they explained to me later, the decision to block chats is generally made by the Supreme Court. And new ones still appear in place of the closed ones. 

In late September 2024, Turan was meant to fly to South Korea to work or study — a plan Elmira hoped would distract him. But he never boarded the flight from Almaty.

Instead, he went to Bishkek, then Moscow, then took a bus to Crimea.

It turned out that he had fled. First he went to Bishkek, from there he flew to Moscow, and then he took a bus to Crimea. He allegedly received some kind of assignment. We managed to contact him only when he was already in Crimea. And he then answered me that he was very tired, said: 'Why do I need this war. Mom, forgive me, I want to go home.' I told him to come back on the first flight. But he replied that he would see Crimea, as he had already come there, she recalled.

Soon after, Turan was arrested in Simferopol. Investigators claim to have found the military application forms on his phone.

All he did was fill out those forms for the war. He didn't hold a weapon in his hands, he didn't kill anyone, he didn't set anyone on fire. In fact, my son is a very gentle person. It was just teenage maximalism. I think he went because he wanted to prove something to himself. And when he realized where he was going, he decided to go back. But he had already been caught. 

Before the trial, he was held in the FSB detention center in Rostov-on-Don. Due to the facility’s restrictions, Elmira could only communicate with him through lawyers. The first lawyer she hired scammed her out of 450,000 rubles.

Others, however, helped her stay in contact with her son.

Despite the sentence, Elmira remains hopeful. She believes her son could be pardoned.

I would like to appeal to the President of Russia: Mr. Putin, have mercy on my son! He has already learned his lesson. Give him a chance. My son is just a fool, but he could not cause any harm to Russia. He still needs to live.

Elmira Zhanabayeva is confident her plea will reach its intended recipient.

Original Author: Igor Ulitin