PMC Wagner Billboard Photo: Global Look Press
Businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin, the founder of the Russian PMC Wagner, commented to journalists on the information published with reference to law enforcement agencies that the armed man detained in the Rostov region was allegedly a deserter from this structure.
We are talking about covert operatives information, Prigozhin emphasized in the first place. “There is a need to investigate separately how this kind of incident, which should be classified as 'top secret', got into the hands of journalists,” the businessman noted. He assured that an investigation will be conducted by Wagner's task force and the results will be made public if necessary.
In addition, the incident itself, reported by the media, will be investigated. On December 7, an armed man was detained in an inactive pig farm near Novoshachtinsk, Rostov Region. According to operative Telegram channels with reference to law enforcement agencies, his identity was established: he is 38-year-old Pavel Nikolin, convicted of robbery in 2016.
Yevgeny Prigozhin did not confirm this information, also referring to his closed nature and the need for an internal investigation. The businessman believes that it is necessary to find out how Nikolin, if the reports are true, “crossed the border of the Russian Federation” with a weapon, i.e. left the war zone.