Journalists Identify Maniacal Doctor Who Abuses Prisoners in Mordovia

Journalists have identified a doctor in prison #10 in Mordovia, Russia, who humiliated, tortured and did not provide medical care to Ukrainian prisoners of war.

The investigation by the Schemes project stated that he was identified through the testimony of former prisoners and open sources, including photos and videos of the medical unit serving the prison.

This is 34-year-old Ilya Sorokin, who has been working in the medical unit since at least 2018, and at the end of 2024 he went to serve and took the call sign “doctor”.

In a new investigation, Schemes describes how one of the most closed colonies in Mordovia is organized, how prisoners of war are held there without procedural status, and what regular torture, including sexual violence, takes place there.

The journalists also name the heads of the Mordovian prison and other employees responsible for the functioning of the institution.

From sources in law enforcement agencies, Schemes received information about 177 Ukrainian prisoners of war who managed to return from Mordovian prison No. 10.

According to the data analyzed by journalists as of April 2025, the first prisoners from Ukraine were brought there on June 26, 2022, and the largest arrival took place six months later.

In particular, in February 2023, 109 prisoners were brought to the prison at once.

The journalists talked to several former prisoners who were brought to Mordovia at that time. They told about a doctor who abused them and did not provide proper medical care.

The prisoners did not know his real name and only a few of them had seen his face, most of them had only heard his voice. They called him “Dr. Evil” among themselves.

Torture

Pavel Afisov, an officer of the 36th Separate Marine Brigade, who had been in the prison for a year and a half, said that the doctor regularly used a stun gun, forcing him to crawl or jump, and shouting Russian song lyrics.

“He got aesthetic pleasure from the fact that you are standing in front of him in a squatting position, your arms are raised, you have nothing, your eyes are closed, but at the same time he kicks you between the legs, hits you in the solar plexus, hits you in the liver, hits you with a rubber stick, a taser. He also says that people like us should be subjected to genocide,” the soldier recalled.

Oleksandr Savov, another marine from the 36th Brigade, who was released from captivity, also spoke about being denied proper treatment and being abused by a medic.

“He stopped me, I saw him standing in a white coat. I thought, well, the doctor will say something now. But I told them that I had suspicions of tuberculosis, I thought maybe they would treat me separately somewhere. And he said to me: “What do you need to shout?”. I don’t know, we’re just there for the first time, and he tased me for that. I was silent. Again, he tased me. Then he said: “Go ahead and scream, and swear at me.” I apologize. What, I said, should I shout? “Glory to Russian medicine”. And again with a taser. I look at him, he’s supposed to be a doctor, he’s wearing the right robe, but he is so cruel.”

According to the investigation, the prisoners turned to this doctor about one of their cellmates, military man Volodymyr Yukhymenko, but to no avail.

In detention, Yukhymenko started to have mental problems and was severely beaten. At one point, he stopped getting out of bed. The date of death officially recorded by the Russian side is September 1, 2023.

Later, Ukrainian experts would diagnose him with pneumonia, numerous beatings, fractures and hemorrhages.

Dr. Evil

The Schemes Project has identified Dr. Evil. Using the website of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Mordovia, they discovered that prison #10 is served by a medical unit with the same number, which, in turn, is a branch of medical and sanitary unit #13.

On the social media pages of the Russian MCH No. 13, journalists found photos and videos of medical workers with open faces.

The journalists selected common photos and submitted them for identification to about 150 former prisoners.

Not all of them responded, but the majority pointed to one of the medical workers – he was an active participant in trade union protests and was friends with many employees of the Mordovia prison on social media.

The decisive evidence was a video from an event organized by medical unit No. 13 and dedicated to the “day of the medical service of the penal system” discovered by Schemes in Russia.

In it, the doctor can not only be seen clearly, but his voice can also be heard. After watching the recording, about fifty of the interviewed military confirmed the identity.

The journalists identified him as Ilya Sorokin, 34 years old, with two children.

Until recently, he openly indicated his place of work on social media – “Medical and Sanitary Unit No. 13 of the Russian Federal Penitentiary Service”.

In the leaks from Russian databases, Schemes found his income data from this medical unit – in particular, before the full-scale invasion.

In 2018, he received almost RUB 560 thousand, and in 2021 – RUB 680 thousand. In terms of dollars, this is about 9 thousand per year.

In 2022, Sorokin posted a photo of a certificate of merit on the social network, which states that he was awarded “for conscientious performance of public duties and active participation in the life of the team.”

The certificate explicitly states that he works in the medical unit that serves in the prison No. 10.

Sorokin, according to the investigation, has a typical Russian family: his father is nostalgic for the USSR and Stalin, his sister is the wife of a paratrooper from Tula. Sorokin himself participates in May 9 parades with portraits of his relatives, wears Soviet uniforms and St. George’s ribbons. After the occupation, he visited Crimea. Today, his social media posts include covers with Z-symbols and support for the Russian army.

A prison of torturers

The journalists contacted Sorokin. When asked about the abuse of Ukrainian prisoners, he gave a short answer: “This cannot happen. I don’t work there”.

The fact that Sorokin worked in the prison was confirmed by Tatiana Zhuravleva, HR specialist of medical unit No. 13. When asked if Sorokin worked there, she said yes, and informed that he would return to work after his military service.

As the journalists found out, Sorokin went to serve at the end of 2024. He took the call sign “Doctor” and is probably currently serving in the logistics forces of the Russian military.

He regularly meets with his colleagues from the medical unit, receiving assistance from them for the unit, including equipment, medicines, and camouflage nets, which, as it turned out, are supplied by his native 10th prison.

In the investigation, the journalists also identified the employees of the medical and sanitary unit No. 13, which includes the prison’s doctors.

According to the testimonies of the prisoners, not a single doctor there provided them with proper care. Separately, Schemes identified those employees of the prison who ensured its operation – provided security, searched for personnel, and were responsible for discipline and life in the camp.

In the investigation, journalists named the prison’s management. According to the prisoners, they not only knew about what was happening, but probably gave the appropriate orders.

As of 2022, it was Serhiy Zabaikin, then he was replaced by Oleksandr Hnutov, who had previously been Zabaikin’s deputy and became the interim head.

In July 2024, Hnutov changed this status to an official one and, according to the prison’s website, remains in office to this day.

As of May, Ukrainian law enforcement agencies were investigating the executions of 268 Ukrainian prisoners of war by Russians.