Nikita Chibrin, a former soldier from Yakutsk who claims to have served in the 64th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade, abandoned the Russian army in September and fled to Europe via Belarus and Kazakhstan.
He is a member of the infamous Russian military unit accused of war crimes during their assault in Bucha, Borodianka, and other towns and villages north of Kyiv.
Chibrin's commander, according to military documents obtained by CNN, was Azatbek Omurbekov, the officer in charge of the 64th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade.
Omurbekov, dubbed the "Butcher of Bucha," is sanctioned by the European Union and the United Kingdom. The entire brigade has been sanctioned by the United States.
Chibrin recalls his fellow Russian soldiers fleeing after allegedly raping two Ukrainian women during their March deployment northwest of Kyiv.
"I saw them run, then I learned they were rapists," he said. "They raped a mother and a daughter."
When they found out about the rapes, their commanders shrugged, according to Chibrin. He claims that the alleged rapists were beaten but never completely punished for their crimes.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense designated troops from Chibrin's brigade as war criminals in April after mass graves containing killed people and dead bodies lying in the streets were discovered following the withdrawal of Russian forces from the Kyiv region.
Russia has denied any role in the massacres while repeating unsubstantiated assertions that photographs of civilian remains were fabricated.
In a decision that sparked international criticism, Russian President Vladimir Putin bestowed an honorary military title on the unit and lauded it for its "heroism" and "bold actions."
He described some of the acts he claims to have seen and heard about in an interview with CNN in a European nation where he has applied for asylum. He also stated that he would be ready to testify against his unit at an international criminal court.
Additionally, he claimed that anyone, military or civilian, who disclosed information regarding the unit's positions had a "direct command to murder" them.
"There are maniacs who enjoy killing a man. Such maniacs turned up there," he said.
When the 64th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade retreated from the area northwest of Kyiv at the end of March, following a fruitless offensive there, he and his regiment returned to Belarus.
He said he had a back injury and went to a military hospital in Russia, but was obliged to return to Ukraine in May. He was transported to the Kharkiv region in eastern Ukraine this time, and then to the woodlands around Izyum.
He said it was then that he realized he had a chance to flee. He spotted other unit commanders leaving the area for Russia in a vehicle and jumped in.
Chibrin initially escaped through Russia to St. Petersburg before boarding a train to Belarus. Once there, he was able to locate a middleman who guided him to Kazakhstan, from which he eventually made his way to the place he is now.
