The St Petersburg palace of Wagner Group boss Yevgeny Prigozhin has been raided by Russian security services.
The FSB says it found guns, ammunition, gold bars, a stuffed alligator and a cupboard full of wigs at the opulent residence the mercenary leader was forced to abandon after his aborted coup attempt last month.
The pro-Kremlin newspaper Izvestia published images and video of the raid yesterday, which also turned up apparently fake passports and a framed photo allegedly showing the severed heads of Prigozhin’s enemies.
Elsewhere in the lavish home, pictures showed a grand piano at the base of a spiral marble staircase, as well as a spa and sauna area, and private indoor swimming pool.
An oversized sledgehammer inscribed with the words “for use in important negotiations” was also displayed in what appears to be the billiards room.
There also appeared to be a private prayer room, decorated with multiple religious icons from the Russian Orthodox church.
Gold bars were discovered. Pic: Izvestia
Huge amounts of cash in various currencies were discovered at the residence, the FSB said, as was a military uniform replete with around two dozen medals.
Prigozhin has been in Belarus since 24 June after he led a mutiny against the Kremlin which saw his Wagner mercenaries march on Moscow.
The home has a marbled floor and grand staircase. Pic: Izvestia
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko brokered the deal which saw Prigozhin, who used to be known as “Putin’s chef”, leave Russia for his country.
Large numbers of Wagner fighters were also absorbed into the Russian military as part of the agreement to end the stand-off.
A giant sledgehammer with the inscription ‘for use in important negotiations’. Pic: Izvestia
Prigozhin has not been seen since he arrived in Belarus, but has released a statement explaining why he began his “march for justice”.
“We started our march because of an injustice,” he said.
Explaining why the advance was abandoned, Prigozhin said he did not want to shed Russian blood – and insisted that he had no intention of overthrowing the government.
He added: “We have shown the level of organisation that an army must meet.”
A swimming pool seen in Prigozhin’s home. Pic: Izvestia
Describing the moment he decided to order his fighters to halt their advance on Moscow, Prigozhin said: “We felt that the demonstration of what we were going to do was enough. And our decision to turn back was influenced by two most important factors.
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The home was raided after Prigozhin’s exile to Belarus. Pic: Izvestia
“The first factor was that we did not want to shed Russian blood,” Prigozhin continued.
“The second factor was that we were going for a demonstration of our protest, not to overthrow the government in the country.”
Wagner mercenary group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin
Vladimir Putin and Yevgeny Prigozhin in Moscow in November 2011
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Sky News’ Security and Defence Editor Deborah Haynes has followed the Western reaction to Prigozhin’s mutiny as well as the latest developments in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, an ex-CIA director has said that the uprising created a “once-in-a-generation” opportunity for the US to recruit spies in Russia.
William Burns said the aborted mutiny was a challenge to the Russian state that showed the corrosive effect of Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine.
Speaking at a lecture to the Ditchley Foundation – a charity focused on British-American relations – Mr Burns said dissatisfaction with the war was creating a rare opportunity to recruit spies, which the CIA was capitalising on.
