The first hostage-taking in the USSR, or why deserters seized an entire school

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

At the end of 1981, the first collective seizure, classified as a terrorist attack, was carried out in the USSR. Two armed deserters took hostage a school class right within the walls of school no. 12 in Sarapul, Udmurt. Then no one suspected that there was more than one such criminal action ahead. The incident was strictly classified and perceived as a one-time accident. And the captured schoolchildren, in whose memory such crimes did not occur, behaved boldly and fearlessly, turning the invaders themselves into hostages of frivolity.

Two outsiders at the Sarapul school who turned out to be deserters

On December 16, 1981, two soldiers entered the door of a school on the outskirts of Sarapul. People in uniform were common here, because a military unit was stationed nearby. The teacher on duty was not at all surprised at the appearance of the military, who explained their arrival by searching for the missing ammunition. According to them, it was necessary to check the version about the involvement of schoolchildren in the disappearance of anti-tank mines from the warehouse. No one was embarrassed by the weapons behind the guests - at that time the trust in the Soviet soldier was undeniable.

The men wandered around the school corridors for some time, which clearly confirmed their search intentions, after which they hurriedly entered the lesson at 10 "B". It soon became clear that these two were deserters who had fled from the location of the local motorized rifle division a couple of hours ago. 19-year-old Melnikov and Kolpakbaev, 21 years old, were members of the Komsomol and did not arouse mistrust at the place of military service. However, as the senior criminal later openly admitted, he had long thought of exchanging the bright Soviet future for the struggle for the freedom of Kazakhstan and cooperation with the West.

The choice of the school for the children of the unit commander and the "ultimatum"

The choice of criminals fell on school number 12 not by chance: they knew that the children of the unit commander himself studied here. Only the accomplices made a mistake, having entered 10 "B" instead of 10 "A". The conscripts told biology teacher Lyudmila Verkhovtseva that in order to conduct a conversation about the loss of weapons, the schoolchildren would remain in the classroom after the call from the lesson. The unsuspecting teacher reported this to the director and complied with the soldiers' request. Kolpakbaev and Melnikov closed the doors of the classroom from the inside and only now announced that the children had been taken hostage.

In confirmation of the seriousness of the intentions, an automatic fire was fired into the ceiling, and one of the students was sent to the director with an "ultimatum". The criminals demanded, in their name, a passport, a visa, and an airplane to fly to the United States or some other capitalist state. Otherwise, according to the note, all the hostages would be shot. Kolpakbaev and Melnikov ordered the students to cover the classroom windows with desks, cupboards and study stands, and to sit on the floor at a distance from each other. And they began to wait.

Negotiations with the KGB and the absence of a negotiating group

The school director immediately contacted the KGB and the police. The head of the Udmurt KGB, Solovyov, found out about the incident while in his official car. He promptly arrived at the scene of the emergency and headed the headquarters for the operation. Negotiations with the criminals were assigned to the young captain of the city KGB, Vladimir Orekhov. This was the first such terrorist attack not only on his account, but also in the history of the entire USSR. The siloviki were confused and did not have a clear plan of action.

There were no professional negotiators as such, and it was difficult to understand how serious the deserters were. As Orekhov later recalled, he learned the news of the seizure of the school at dinner, taking it for absurdity. Well, what terrorists and hostages can be in a small quiet Sarapul. But already a couple of minutes later, policemen with machine guns and in helmets rushed past him. And Orekhov rushed to school. In the first minutes, a picture of unnecessary fuss appeared before his eyes. Not knowing what to do, each specialized service did what it could. Firefighters rolled out their sleeves, medics deployed a mobile blood transfusion station. And only the police guessed right with a double cordon - the details of the state of emergency instantly spread throughout the town, and stunned parents, relatives and friends of the captured children rushed to the school, urging the townspeople to go to the assault.

The school, with the exception of captured 10 B, was evacuated. There were only male employees and security officials in the building. With the help of the school radio center, Orekhov began negotiations with the terrorists, urging them to prudence and demonstrating their readiness to meet their demands. At the same moment, Andropov, at that time the chairman of the KGB of the USSR, sent group "A" (the predecessor of the special forces "Alpha") to Udmurtia by a special plane to eliminate the terrorists.

Psychological treatment of invaders and freeing children without a drop of blood

It must be said that the invaders behaved with a degree of gentleness and compliance, even letting the children go to the toilet in small groups. By and large, it was possible to save some of the children at the time of their exit into the corridor. But, fearing for the safety of those who remained, the KGB officers did not take such steps. Seeing this, young inexperienced conscripts were imbued with confidence in the representative of the security forces, Captain Orekhov, and even let him into the classroom. Together they began to discuss a mutually beneficial plan of action. Dragging out time, Orekhov explained to the criminals that it took some time to prepare passports. And they agreed with every argument he made.

After some time, General Boris Soloviev, the chairman of the KGB of the Ukrainian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, who arrived in time for the school, persuaded the invaders to let the female half of the class go. Eight boys remained among the hostages. By the morning they brought their passports. At 5 am Orekhov entered the classroom and invited the children to follow him, somehow magically convincing the delayed conscripts to release the children. They say that the documents for departure are ready, a car is waiting at the exit, and the plane is warming up the engines.

The demoralized terrorists understood everything as soon as Orekhov and their children disappeared behind closed doors. But it was too late. In the classroom they were left alone, and at any second they could be dealt with as they deserved. The commander of the capture group, Zaitsev, gave the order to take the deserters alive. When the soldiers burst into the room, Melnikov threw away the machine gun himself, and Kolpakbayev, who tried to shoot, was instantly neutralized. The 16-hour nightmare ended in an instant. Of the 25 students of the captured class, no one was injured, and after two days they continued their schoolwork. The KGB took a nondisclosure agreement from the parents, lifting the ban only after 15 years. The criminals were convicted in Sverdlovsk: Kolpakbaev received 13 years, Melnikov - eight.

Some soldiers in the USSR did not take hostages, but simply fled the country. For a long time it was unknown how was the fate of the Soviet pilot-deserter who fled to the USA … But in 1976, because of this, an international scandal erupted.