The number of foreigners imprisoned in Russian prisons is increasing year by year. According to Arkady Gostev, head of the Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN), as of January 1, 2025, there were more than 30,000 foreign citizens in Russian prisons, 69.5% of whom were citizens of Central Asian countries.
According to Gostev, the operational situation in Russian prisons is becoming more complicated. In some cases, there have been conflicts between prisoners, escapes, and hostage-taking. This, in turn, creates problems in the implementation of court decisions and ensuring security.
Despite the increase in the number of prisoners in Russia and the change in their level of crime, there are some specific trends in the composition of the convicts. According to Gostev, the number of convicts in places of deprivation of liberty has decreased, but their criminal activity is associated with very serious and especially serious crimes. If in previous years the number of convicts for several types of crimes has decreased, in 2025 the share of those imprisoned for committing especially serious crimes increased by 88%.
Crimes related to extremism and terrorism also continue to increase in Russia. According to Gostev, the number of persons committing crimes considered extremist and terrorist has increased by 45.5%. It was also noted that the number of those committing crimes against the constitutional order and security foundations has increased by 96%.
At the same time, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs reported that in January-November 2024, the number of crimes committed by foreign migrants and stateless persons decreased by 2.1%. Among them, serious and especially serious crimes decreased by 3.9%, cases of intentional infliction of grievous bodily harm by 11.1%, and murders and attempted murders by 4.5%.
Despite the effectiveness of state measures in the fight against crime in Russia, the issues of balancing the situation in prisons and combating extremism remain urgent. The growth in the number of foreigners, as well as the increasing burden on the prison population, have a significant impact on the work and strategies of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia.
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