Oleksandr Rudenko is a citizen of Ukraine and a serviceman of the "Azov" special forces brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine. He was taken prisoner in Donetsk Oblast, presumably in May 2022.
On March 11, 2026, Rudenko was added to Rosfinmonitoring's list of extremists and terrorists.
On April 17, 2026, Judge Igor Petrovich Degtyarev of the Southern District Military Court found Rudenko guilty under Part 2 of Article 205.4 of the Russian Criminal Code ("Participation in the activities of a terrorist community") and Article 205.3 ("Undergoing training for the purpose of carrying out terrorist activity"), and sentenced him to 18 years in a strict-regime penal colony. The verdict was not appealed.
According to the prosecution's account, "in the summer of 2021 Rudenko voluntarily joined the 'Azov' regiment... Having undergone training, he took part in combat operations serving as a gunner in a tank crew."
