Military ID found on North Korean PoW was issued to real Russian resident – media
A fake military ID discovered on a captured North Korean soldier in Kursk Oblast was issued in the name of a real person from the Russian republic of Tyva (Tuva).
Source: Russian media outlet Agentstvo. News
Details: The capture of two North Korean soldiers was reported by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the Security Service of Ukraine on 11 January. One of the captives was carrying a military ID card issued to Antonin Aranchyn, a native of Tyva born in October 1998. The document indicates his place of birth (Turan, Tyva) and civilian occupation (tailor). The military ID card is undated and unsigned, and there is no photograph of the holder.
An investigation by Agentstvo.News has revealed that the data of a real Russian citizen was used to create the fake identity.
The news outlet found a Tyva resident with the same full name and date of birth in personal data leaks. There is only one person in Russia with such data. The sole difference in the personal information is his place of birth, which is Turan in the military ID card but Erzin (also in Tyva) in Aranchyn's passport.
No connection between Aranchyn and the tailoring business could be found in the leaks. In 2020, he worked in forestry in the Tes-Khemsky district of the Tyva Republic (no position was specified). In 2023, he stated in an application for a microloan that he worked as a security guard in a grocery store, while in other applications made that same year, he claimed to be a pensioner. According to the leaks, his applications for microloans were repeatedly turned down after a creditworthiness assessment.
Aranchyn’s last application for a microloan (RUB 7,000, about US$68) in the leaks is dated 24 February 2024.
Agentstvo.News was unable to contact Aranchyn using the phone numbers found in the data leaks. Nor was it possible to contact his sister, who lives in Tyva. Neither Aranchyn nor his sister have accessed their pages on the VKontakte social media platform in over a decade.
Background:
- On 11 January, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the Security Service of Ukraine reported that Ukrainian soldiers had captured two North Korean soldiers in Kursk Oblast.
- Special Operation Forces have released a video of their operatives capturing a North Korean soldier and transporting him from Russia. A video of another Korean soldier has been posted by Air Assault troops.
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