Codename Lex, Finohin Maksym Anatolevych. You have to go protect your family, like you were taught in your youth.
My wife came home from work, my knapsack was already packed. I said: “That’s it! I can’t take it any longer.” She realized there was no use trying to talk me out of it.
Before the war I worked for an insurance company.
It was 40 days since my father’s death, I asked for some time off. I was given 2 weeks, I left for Kyiv. My boys entered Ilovaisk without me.
I felt something was off. I came back before my two weeks. The 23rd, we were the last caravan that entered Ilovaisk.
On the 29th we were in Krasnosel’ske, it’s divided by a ravine. We crossed the ravine.
Russians were on the other side. They saw us and opened fire on us. We fired back.
My helmet was hit by a bullet, from about 30 meters, 5.45. It hit in the area of my temple. The fibers of the helmet did their job. It didn’t penetrate my head; it got stuck in the helmet.
Their uniforms were Russian, their tanks Russian. We didn’t have T-72s. The colors were Russian, identifying signs were white flags and white circles.
Our boys took 8 or 10, I don’t remember, Russian prisoners. From the 31st air assault and tank crew from the 6th.
The Russians presented us with an ultimatum, we either retreat, surrender our weapons or they mow us down with their artillery. They wouldn’t play with us.
The Russians promised, gave the word of their Russian officer, that if we surrendered they would hand us over, through the buffer zone, to our side on the very next day.
To the Ukrainian side and that they would take care of our wounded. So we surrendered, disarmed. We came out to them without weapons. They didn’t hand over the wounded.
The wounded were (we were sitting there in the field)…the wounded were right there with us, but they were in Kamaz trucks. And without medical help.
We wouldn’t have gone had we known that such a green corridor awaited us, a green corridor that was actually red.
But my knapsack is always ready. If it starts up again, I will obviously go without a second thought.