The Lawfare Podcast Lawfare Daily: Emily Hoge on Russian Mobsters at the Front
Nov 19, 2025
Emily Hoge, a historian at Clemson University and contributor to Lawfare, delves into the troubling intersection of Russian organized crime and the war in Ukraine. She explains how the recruitment of violent prisoners for frontline service distorts the social contract Putin promised. Hoge highlights the rising crime as returning veterans face reintegration challenges, altering public safety perceptions. The conversation also examines the state's uneasy relationship with organized crime and the potential for renewed chaos reminiscent of the 1990s.
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Prisoners Used To Hide War Burdens
- Russia recruits prisoners and marginalized groups to hide war costs and avoid mass conscription.
- Emily Hoge argues this makes the war invisible to elite populations while shifting violence onto vulnerable people.
Cannibals Pardoned To Fight
- Russian recruiters accepted extremely violent inmates, including at least three cannibals, into front-line units.
- Hoge recounts bizarre cases where cannibals received pardons to serve in Ukraine.
Returned Veterans Fuel Visible Violence
- Many returned pardoned veterans committed sensational violent crimes, increasing public fear.
- Hoge links roughly 750–1,000 violent crimes to returning pardoned soldiers, worsening social stability.