Orphan Marries Twice During SVO, Family Sues Wife

Alexander Rodkin from Golyashmanovo (Tyumen region, Russia) grew up in an orphanage, spent his life searching for family and care, and while serving in the special military operation, he married twice in one year. After he went missing, a bitter conflict erupted between his relatives and his official wife.

His sister is convinced: the marriage was a sham and rushed, while the wife, on the contrary, insists they married for love and she doesn«t need any money. While the body of the 44-year-old soldier hasn»t been found and his status as missing in action remains, the parties accuse each other of greed, indifference, and lies. Our colleagues at 72.RU listened to both versions of this story. More details are in the 72.RU article.

“Everything Happened Very Quickly”

Alexander Rodkin grew up in an orphanage. According to his sister, their mother was deprived of parental rights, and all the children were distributed to different institutions. Alexander himself, along with his brother Sergei, ended up in a correctional school, while another sister was in another orphanage. Only later, when the children grew up, did their grandmother start bringing them together—it was she who helped maintain contact and gather the whole family.

“We grew up without parents, but we always tried to stick together. Sasha was like that—he always needed care, attention, family,” says Valentina.

Alexander, according to her, never managed to create his own strong family. He was never officially married before the events related to the special military operation, although he lived with different women.

The decision to go to the combat zone, his sister is sure, was not a conscious choice or an ideological step. Alexander led a difficult life: he abused alcohol, got into conflicts, lost his driver«s license.

The immediate reason for signing the contract, according to Valentina, was a domestic quarrel. In one company, Alexander pushed a woman, after which a complaint was filed against him. The situation could have been resolved by paying moral compensation, but, as the family claims, the man was “processed” so that the contract became, in his opinion, the only way out.

“He went to the police, came back to me and said he decided to sign the contract. Everything happened very quickly,” recalls his sister.

Married Twice in a Year

Before being sent to the special military operation, Alexander had lived with women several times, but, according to relatives, he had never formalized relationships officially before. Valentina says she repeatedly asked her brother not to rush into marriage, but he was always looking for care and warmth—perhaps due to his orphanage past.

Alexander entered his first official marriage already during service—with a woman he met on social media. However, this union quickly fell apart, and the divorce went through without problems.

The second marriage, which became the cause of the current conflict, was concluded literally in two days. Alla, whom Alexander married, according to his sister, had previously been acquainted with their family through the older sister. For a long time, they communicated by correspondence, and when Alexander came on leave, he went to her for two days—and it was during this period that the marriage was registered.

“They started communicating by correspondence, only two months. When he came on leave, he went to her for two days and that«s it—they got married. And I told her in court, if you knew him earlier, then he wasn»t needed by you, but as soon as you found out he was in the special military operation—you immediately fell in love with our brother,” Valentina recounts.

Moreover, Alexander, his sister claims, did not trust his new wife: soon after registering the marriage, he came to Valentina and issued a new general power of attorney in her name. And after that—he went back to the special military operation.

Already there, according to the sister of the serviceman, the man began to have a rift with his new wife. Coming to his senses, he allegedly asked his sister to file for divorce on his behalf. However, the divorce process did not take place.

On 10 May, Alexander Rodkin went missing. Valentina was informed about what happened by his comrades. Ten days later, his sister turned to the military enlistment office, but there, according to her, they refused to communicate with her, citing the presence of Alexander«s official wife.

“They told me directly: he has a spouse, we are not obliged to inform you of anything,” says Valentina.

His wife herself, according to relatives, did not take any part in the search for her husband. Then Valentina went to court for her brother, filing for divorce from Alla. Later, the court received official notification that Alexander was listed as missing in action. Because of this, the case was suspended. Alexander«s body has still not been found. Comrades, according to his sister, speak very cautiously: it is only known that the man went on a combat mission that was called “impossible.”

Conflict Over Payments That Don«t Exist

After Alexander«s disappearance, an open conflict began between his relatives and his official wife. The family insists: the marriage was fictitious, concluded spontaneously.

“By law, she is the wife. All payments—to her. We have no rights at all,” says Valentina.

Moreover, according to his sister, Alexander«s wife actively insisted on DNA submission, raising the issue of payments, but allegedly did not participate in the search. The serviceman»s relatives refuse to submit DNA at his wife«s request.

“We are searching without DNA, they are not going to do anything for her,” says Valentina. “I asked at least to give me the right to bury my brother if he is found. They won«t even give me that.”

Now the family hopes for publicity and legal help. They admit: formally, the law is on the wife«s side, but they consider the situation unfair.

“He was our brother. We grew up with him in the orphanage, we were his family all his life. And now it turns out that we are nobody,” says his sister.

“We Married for Love”: The Wife«s Version

Alexander Rodkin«s wife Alla insists: their marriage was not fictitious and was not concluded for payments. Alla assures that she met her husband about ten years ago and they have maintained contact since then. Communication, according to her, resumed in the fall, when the man was already in the combat zone. Alexander himself wrote to her on social media. The couple always had feelings for each other. They regularly corresponded, called each other, she worried about him and prayed.

According to Alla, Alexander himself proposed. She admits that she had doubts at first—she was scared by the special military operation and the risk of losing her husband.

Nevertheless, the woman claims, the decision to marry was conscious and mutual. According to Alla«s version, by the time of his last leave, Alexander had difficult relations with his relatives. The woman claims that he himself did not want to communicate with them and asked not to interfere in his personal life. At the same time, she insists: it was she who persuaded him to visit his sisters, despite the tension.

When Alexander came to her in Golyashmanovo, the woman introduced him to her children and relatives. The serviceman himself came to his beloved with flowers and gifts, was happy, and talked about the future. It was then, she claims, that he finally decided to register the marriage.

The registration, according to Alla, took place without pressure or rush, and the short time between Alexander«s arrival and the wedding she explains by his limited leave.

“He was happy those days. And when he told his sister: ‘I will live with the woman I love. I will get married, that«s it,’ she started stamping her feet, screaming that I won»t let you get married. Is he a child? Why do you decide?” she indignantly says.

About her husband«s disappearance, Alla, according to her, learned unofficially—from comrades. The woman claims that she still does not believe in Alexander»s death and hopes that he might be alive. Alla says that she independently appealed to various authorities, sought information through acquaintances, tried to find out if Alexander had been admitted to morgues or hospitals.

“I am still searching everywhere. In morgues, through acquaintances. I was told he is not there. I am glad he is not there. Maybe he is alive. I pray to find him alive,” says Alla.

She rejects the relatives« accusations that she is interested exclusively in payments and emphasizes: for her, her husband»s fate is more important.

“I don«t need money. I don»t need these millions. I can earn it myself,” says Alla. “They are portraying me as some kind of beggar. I want to find him alive. And she won«t calm down because of this money. Do you think she needs her brother now? She doesn»t even search for him. She doesn«t submit DNA, although I have asked many times. She needs the money.”

What Else Have We Written About Similar Stories?

Previously, we told you the story of another conflict. A dispute unfolded between the mother of a Tyumen resident killed in the special military operation and his young widow. According to the mother, she received payments and is now seeking awards—the “For Courage” medal and the Order of Courage. For them, the 20-year-old widow is also entitled to payments.

Now the mother of the deceased serviceman is trying to prove that her son«s marriage to a girl from Tyumen was fictitious. According to Irina, 19-year-old Vladimir married while in prison, two weeks before being sent under contract to the special military operation zone. Before that, he had no relationships. However, Alyona told a completely different version. Details are in the article.