Russia Faces 5 Million-Ruble 'Black Widow' Scam Wave Targeting Soldiers' Death Benefits
Updated
Updated · CNN · Aug 5
Russia Faces 5 Million-Ruble 'Black Widow' Scam Wave Targeting Soldiers' Death Benefits
3 articles · Updated · CNN · Aug 5
Summary
Russian families are raising alarm over "black widow" schemes in which women allegedly marry soldiers shortly before deployment, then claim death payouts starting at 5 million rubles when they are killed.
Maria, a 37-year-old from St. Petersburg, said she learned only after her 59-year-old father died in Ukraine that he had married a woman 22 years younger two days before leaving for the front, making the widow his legal next of kin.
The cases have fueled calls for a crackdown as officials and state media say the scams are spreading; lawmaker Leonid Slutsky said such crimes had reached "serious proportions."
The problem grew after Russia eased fast-track marriages for recruits following the 2022 invasion, while some cases have involved hospital staff, disputed inheritances and even security-force personnel accused of steering vulnerable men into sham unions.