MOSCOW • Russia's feared riot police have launched an online recruitment advertising blitz in the weeks since nationwide protests erupted over the jailing of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.

Since then, riot police have advertised hundreds of times for jobs on recruitment websites such as HH.ru, run by Headhunter Group, Avito and Superjob.ru.

A Reuters review of data provided by some of the recruitment firms suggests the ad blitz went well beyond any similar drive.

Omon units of the Russian National Guard, who work at protests across Russia, posted for jobs on Headhunter 1,607 times from Jan 24 to Feb 24. That compared to just 151 job ads in the same period last year.

"No experience is required," read a job description for police snipers for the Second Special Regiment on Headhunter's page, promising candidates a monthly wage of up to 70,000 roubles (S$1,300).

The ad was first posted on the Headhunter website on Feb 21, and republished 100 times within four days, its press service said.

The Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs did not reply to a request for comment. The Russian National Guard press service said publication of job ads was "business as usual", and it did not analyse whether the number of ads was surging or not.

On Avito, the number of riot police jobs posted between Jan 26 and Feb 25 was 3.7 times higher than the same period last year and the number of responses was up 5.1 times, according to data the company shared with Reuters.

Two Omon officers reached by phone said the recruitment drive was not linked to protests but reflected a need to replace people leaving the service for other jobs.

An officer from the Second Special regiment said the intensified hiring followed a decision two years ago to expand staff numbers.

REUTERS