The Federal Service of Russia has opened a criminal case on Friday against the leader of Wagner, Yevgeni Prigozhin, for inciting an armed rebellion after he accused the Russian Defense Ministry of attacking training camps of the paramilitary group.
“The accusations spread on behalf of Yevgeny Prigozhin are groundless. In connection with these statements, the Russian Federal Security Service has opened a criminal case for calling for an armed rebellion,” the National Anti-Terrorist Committee reported, according to has picked up the TASS news agency.
The Russian Criminal Code punishes armed rebellion, which seeks to “overthrow or forcibly change the constitutional system of the Russian Federation, as well as violate the territorial integrity” of Moscow, with prison terms of between 12 and 20 years.
The Kremlin spokesman, Dimitri Peskov, has assured that the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, is aware of the situation around Prigozhin, without offering more details about it, the Interfax news agency has collected.
Previously, a Telegram channel of the mercenary organization has denounced that “a missile attack against Wagner training camps” had been launched and that it had left “many victims.” “The coup has been delivered (…) by soldiers from the Russian Ministry of Defense,” the message highlights.
The Wagner Group has warned that it has up to 25,000 paramilitaries in its ranks and that they are going to “find out why this chaos is happening,” which they say “is true.” “All those who want can join. We must put an end to this disgrace,” the organization said, adding that it is necessary to “stop evil” within the Russian military leadership.
In addition, Wagner has promised to “arrest” Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, whom he accuses of having fled to Rostov to carry out an armed attack from there against the paramilitary group. “This is not a military coup. This is a march for justice”, he has settled.
The leadership of the Wagner Group, which is fighting on the Russian side in the war in Ukraine, has been critical of the Russian military authorities and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, whom, among other things, they criticized for the lack of supplies and ammunition during the battle for Bakhmut.