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When Russian soldier Sergei Khandozhko got married the day after his enlistment in October 2023, his family and friends were stunned. The 40-year-old had never mentioned his bride. He hadn’t even talked about marriage. Even stranger was the 20-minute wedding ceremony with no photos or ring exchanges, and only one guest. Afterward, his new wife continued to live with her ex-husband and their children, according to testimony and a court order reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.
But alarm bells began ringing after Khadozko died of wounds sustained on the battlefield in Ukraine and his daughter-in-law received the full amount paid to any relative of a fallen soldier, the soldier's sister-in-law said in an interview. The compensation, totaling $200,000, is almost 20 times higher than the average annual salary.
A judge in a Russian civil court ruled earlier this year that Khandozhko's fiancée, Elena Sokolova, had tricked him into marrying her in order to inherit his inheritance. The marriage was annulled and Sokolova was ordered to pay a fine of 3,000 rubles, equivalent to $37. She has appealed the court's decision and did not respond to requests for comment.
The targeting of Russian soldiers for financial gain has become so widespread in wartime Russia that people have begun labeling women who do it as "black widows." Courts dealing with the problem are trying to determine whether the marriages were genuine or entered into by the women solely for financial gain after the deaths of their husbands.
Russian lawmakers have proposed laws that would impose harsher penalties for those behind such acts or limit the benefits they can receive from marrying a soldier. The phenomenon stems in part from the large sums of money Russia has had to offer to entice men to risk their lives on the front lines of the war in Ukraine. These include high salaries and bonuses for joining the army and large payments to the families of those who die on the front lines.
Payments to the families of slain soldiers often exceed 14.5 million rubles, or $180,000, depending on rank and circumstances. The money has flooded into the poor Russian regions from which many frontline soldiers come, sparking disputes among relatives over the income and drawing in those seeking a share.
The estranged parents have resurfaced, demanding a share of the proceeds, according to court documents reviewed by WSJ. The grandparents sought money as compensation for years of caring for a grandson captured in battle.
But Russian lawmakers and officials say that schemes in which women, alone or in groups, persuade soldiers to marry them before they go to war — in the hope of profiting from their deaths in battle — are particularly harmful. “These monsters have chosen to dishonor the most sacred thing, care for the families of fallen heroes!” lawmaker Leonid Slutsky said this summer. He compared the women involved to those who looted during the siege of Leningrad in World War II.
Legal experts say the true scale of the problem is difficult to determine. WSJ identified six court cases in which authorities alleged or concluded that a Russian soldier or his relatives had been deceived through a sham marriage.
Social media makes it easy for prospective women who want to become “black widows” to find soldiers. On Russia’s VK platform, there are dozens of groups specifically for women seeking potential husbands serving in Ukraine.
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