Russian Soldiers Loot Local Shops, Steal Freezers And Cash Registers: Ukraine Intel

The Russian army is looting and stealing from the homes and shops of Ukrainian civilians across several territories, according to Ukrainian intelligence.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (UAF) wrote in a Facebook post that the Russian army looted local shops, stole goods and store equipment, such as cash registers and freezers in the city of Nova Kakhovka in Kherson Oblast.

"Looting and robbery of the local population continue in the territories temporarily occupied by enemy troops. From the local shops of Nova Kakhovka, the Russian invaders take away all goods and equipment, including freezers and cash registers," the UAF General Staff stated.

A similar situation is also happening in the Novomykolaivka settlement in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. According to the UAF General Staff, the Russian army on Dec. 2 organized a seizure of personal valuables and household appliances of Novomukolaivka residents. In addition, the Russian army also conducted a check of documents of at least 100 locals. It is unclear what documents were checked or what items were stolen.

Russian forces have been accused of stealing and looting Ukrainian properties on several occasions since the war began in February. In April, Ukraine's government accused Russia of stealing several hundred thousand tons of grain from areas it occupied in the war. The Kremlin denied the allegations, adding that it did not know where the information came from.

In early May, Melitopol Mayor Ivan Federov accused Russian soldiers of stealing ancient artifacts from a local museum, including a collection of Scythian gold pieces that were more than 2,300 years old. A total of 198 gold items were stolen from the Melitopol museum.

Apart from artifacts, the Russian army was also accused of stealing at least 2,000 pieces of paintings, icons and sculptures from three museums in Mariupol. The stolen items included the painting Gospel of 1811.

In November, Russian forces reportedly looted homes and businesses throughout the city of Kherson during their withdrawal. One of the places they emptied was the Kherson Art Museum, known for keeping one of the country's best collections of European paintings from the 17th century to the 20th century. At least 14,000 items were stolen from the museum, as reported by PBS.