"Pechy Is Big Machine For Extorting Money"

The relatives of the soldier who died in Pechy shared the latest details of the case.

The relatives of Aliaksandr Korzhych, who died in the military unit near Barysau, believe that the version of suicide simply does not stand up to scrutiny. Aliaksandr’s relatives and friends say they do not feel pressure from law enforcement or military authorities, but they are convinced that if there was no such resonance, then, probably, the investigation would not have happened, Radio Svaboda reports.

Siarhei, a close Aliaksandr Korzhych’s relative, hopes that the people who conduct the investigation will do their work honestly:

"The version of the investigation that it was a suicide is just stupid. A man can’t part from this life like that: with fastened legs, a T-shirt on his head. The version, that the ensign had taken his card and embezzled the money, is another article of the Criminal Code already. But at least there is some progress. It is too early to assess the actions of the investigators. But the case has become high-profile. So we'll see. It will get clearer after the examination results.

It seems to me that this is generally a big machine for ripping-off money. Money is being squeezed out of the pockets of the parents of young soldiers. I think that not only sergeants are involved, it is possible that they do not take everything to themselves, but there is a system."

Questions to investigators

Siarhei says that he had several questions that were not answered yet:

"There's a very important thing that attracts attention: the soldier who found Sasha hanged. Officially, it was reported that this soldier was placed in Navinki (mental hospital). Allegedly he had mental disorders and was in one of the clinics in Minsk. But no one tells anything about him now: neither who he is nor where he came from. However, he is a very important person for the investigators. We tried to figure out t least something about him, but didn't succeed.

One more important thing – appearance of a mysterious girl. According to Sasha's friends who served with him, a girl appeared somewhere around the end of September. She allegedly was coming to him, giving him money, medicines. After Sasha's death, she began to talk with his friends on social networks. She wrote that she had made friends with him, and described the last month of his life in the army in details. But she refused to meet. And when it became known about the interrogation of ensign Artur Virbal, it turned out that this girl was on his friend list in social networks. This is strange, because Sasha did not tell his friends about her. Maybe it's just rumors, but I heard that she was that ensign's sister. But it will not be difficult for the investigation to find out who she is."

We don't need such an army

Aliaksandr Korzhych’s mother hopes that those guilty of her son's death will be punished according to the law:

"All these events are like a nightmare for me. I could not even imagine that our military, that our army, that our military leaders, who live at the expense of the taxes we pay, can do this. I hope that this will not go unpunished. But it's not sergeants that you should start with. You should start with the commander of the unit and the company commander. This wasn't done by one person, there is a real group of murderers there."

I don't think that we need such an army. I don't know why they gather murderers in the army. They can defend neither us not the state. They can defend no one. I believe that such people – the killers in the epaulettes – are the first to shoot us, since they have access to weapons. They will be the first to rob us and kill us."

"I'm waiting for Sasha to part with me"

Aliaksandr Korzhych’s best friend Ilya says that Sasha never was a conflict person. Ilya says that he could not even imagine that something like this would happen to his friend:

"Sasha's death is a shock for me. He couldn't just end up with his life. I'm waiting for my best friend to come to me in a dream. One of our mutual acquaintances saw Sasha in a dream. There was I, my father and Sasha, dressed in white. Sasha wanted to put something in his mouth, and he was asked if he was ready already? And he replied: can I not go yet, can I stay here for a while?"

It’s most difficult is in the so-called Texas in Pechy

There are many groups in social networks that have been created by soldiers who are now serving in the military units near Barysau. There are accounts of ensign Artur Virbal as well. Most military do not respond. They do not answer phone calls as well. It is likely that the investigators engaged in the case are keeping their cell phones now.

Maksim Aharodnik, a resident of Homel, served in Pechy several years ago. He learned about the case with Sasha Korzhych from the Internet:

"I did not experience anything similar to what is described now. But I can tell that it has always been most difficult in the so-called Texas in Pechy. Probably, the deceased soldier served there. In this unit there have always been strange situations, it was very difficult to serve there. Texas – it's kind of maintenance. Well, the guys who served in Pechy can confirm this. It is difficult to imagine why this happened to Korzhych. It is impossible to comment on anything without knowing all the details of the case."

Aliaksandr Charkau, a resident of Ivanava in Brest region, also served in Pechy. The young man confirmed words about the so-called Texas"

"It's really difficult in Texas. Everything is lax and quite difficult. Aliaksandr was not lucky that he got there. But as a whole, everything was all right with me there. A lot depends there on the school and the unit number."