Russian security forces on Wednesday (December 7th) arrested a fugitive accused of having shot and wounded a policeman and suspected, according to the media, of being a deserter from the paramilitary group Wagner which fights in Ukraine.
In a statement, the Russian Investigative Committee, in charge of the main criminal investigations, indicated that the suspect, aged 38, was arrested in the village of Kisselevo, in the region of Rostov-on-Don, bordering from Ukraine.
A previous conviction for theft and burglary
According to this source, he is suspected of having opened fire on Tuesday with a submachine gun on police officers, wounding one, in the city of Novochakhtinsk.
There followed a short manhunt that lasted nearly 24 hours until his arrest.
The suspect had already been convicted in the past for "
theft and burglary
", said the Investigation Committee on Wednesday.
The media BAZA, close to the Russian security organs, affirms that the suspect was just serving a sentence for "
theft and burglary
" in a prison in the country, from where he was recruited by the Wagner group to fight in Ukraine.
But he would then have deserted, according to BAZA.
Read alsoWar in Ukraine: the very ambitious Prigojine, godfather of "Wagner", comes out of the shadows
Asked about the subject, the head of Wagner, Evguéni Prigojine, did not confirm or deny the suspect's membership in his group, while affirming on social networks that his team was conducting an "
investigation
".
Quoted by his press service, Evguéni Prigojine thanked the police officers who arrested this man, while comparing the latter to the hero of the first film Rambo: an American elite soldier traumatized and pursued in the forest by the police. order.
In recent months, the Wagner group has been accused of having recruited hundreds of detainees in Russian prisons to go and fight in the hottest areas of the front in Ukraine, in exchange for a reduced sentence.
In mid-November, Evguéni Prigojine denied any involvement in the brutal execution of a suspected member of his organization accused of desertion in Ukraine, after having nevertheless greeted her at first.
