“People saw them simply loading everything on to Ural trucks, everything they could get their hands on,” said Samson, shaking her head in disbelief. A dozen houses on the village’s main street had been looted, as well as all the shops. Other villagers reported losing washing machines, food, laptops and even a sofa.

Over the past week, during reporting from numerous places where Russian troops had occupied Ukrainian territory, the Guardian has collected evidence that suggests looting by Russian forces was not merely a case of a few wayward soldiers, but a systematic part of Russian military behaviour, across multiple towns and villages.

Reports of looting have prompted widespread outrage among Ukrainians, as well as among Russians opposed to the war.

“Those who fight like this are not regular army, but rabble,” wrote Vladimir Pastukhov, a liberal Russian political scientist who is a columnist for Novaya Gazeta. “Even in the Soviet and Nazi armies, looting was fought as much as possible, albeit not always successfully. In the Russian army … it is a form of additional motivation of the personnel.”