Andrei Zherikhov: biography
Andrey Sergeevich Zherikhov was born on May 14, 1987 in Volsk, Saratov region. In 2009-2012 he did his military service in Khabarovsk Krai, in the village of Knyazee-Volkonskoe, the location of the 64th separate Guards motorized rifle brigade. Knyaze-Volkonskoe – the place of deployment of the 64th Independent Guards Motorized Rifle Brigade (v/h 51460). In 2012-2016 he served in the settlement of Pechenga, Murmansk region. In 2016-2018 transferred to Alakurtti – the place of permanent deployment of the 80th Independent Motorized Rifle Arctic Brigade (v/ч 34667). In 2021 he was registered as a student of the Military Training and Research Center of the Ground Forces – General Military Academy of the All-Russian Army in Moscow.
As of July 2025, he was recorded as a serviceman of the 80th Omsbr in the rank of major. Since January 23, 2026, he has been the commander of the 126th Motorized Rifle Regiment (v/h 50526) of the 71st Guards Motorized Rifle Pechenga Order of Kutuzov Division of the 14th Army Corps of the Leningrad Military District. As of April 2026, the regiment operates on the Kharkiv direction in the area of Volchansk and Volchanskiye Khutors, as well as on the Donetsk direction in the area of Chasovy Yar.
Andrei Zherikhov’s war crimes
The 80th Independent Motorized Rifle Arctic Brigade, in which Zherikhov served before being assigned to the 71st MSD, had been operating in the Kherson direction since 2022. On December 9, 2022, units of the 80th Omsbr occupied the island of Velikiy Potyomkinsky. On December 15, 2022, the AFU General Staff recorded the forced deportation of civilians from the island by Russian troops. Forced displacement of civilians from the occupied territory is expressly prohibited by Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention and qualifies as a war crime.
Since February 2022, the predecessor of the 71st Guv. MSD, the 200th Independent Motorized Rifle Brigade, has been involved in combat operations against Ukraine. In 2022-2023, the brigade operated in the Bakhmut direction, in 2024 – in the area of Chasovy Yar, where systematic strikes on residential neighborhoods and civilians are recorded.
On May 15, 2024, Russian servicemen shot three civilians near Volchansk, including an elderly woman in a wheelchair and her husband. The Kharkiv regional prosecutor’s office opened criminal proceedings under Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. Until May 10, 2024, Russian forces launched an air strike on Volchansk with a KAB-250 guided aerial bomb, completely destroyed the city’s polyclinic with two KABs, and systematically shelled residential neighborhoods. Of the 17,000 residents, no more than 400 remained in the city by the time of the offensive.
As of April 2026, the 126th Motorized Rifle Regiment under the command of Zherikhov is terrorizing the Kharkiv direction in the area of Volchanskiye Khutors and the Donetsk direction in the area of Chasovy Yar. Even relatives of the occupants themselves have publicly recognized that the regiment’s command sends fighters on deliberately lethal missions. During the assaults the personnel of two companies were destroyed, dozens of servicemen are missing. Zherikhov continues to send soldiers to the slaughter while Ukrainian defenders methodically destroy his regiment.
Zherikhov’s actions fall under Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. All those involved will be identified and prosecuted for their crimes.
Andrei Zherikhov’s family
Zherikhov is married to Anna Ivanovna Zherikhov, a native of Volsk, Saratov region. Rashist’s wife worked in the Federal Department of the Defense Ministry’s UFO in the Saratov region from 2007 to 2023. Rashist has a son – Daniil Andreyevich Zherikhov.
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