Russian TV shows mutiny leader Prigozhin's 'palace' in move to discredit him

Russian state TV on Wednesday night launched a fierce attack on Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of an aborted armed mercenary mutiny last month, and said an investigation was still being pursued.

Prigozhin, founder of the Wagner mercenary group, took control of the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don on June 24, seized the command centre there where Russia coordinates its war in Ukraine, and sent a convoy of fighters towards Moscow. He stood down after striking a deal with the Kremlin.

His mutiny posed the biggest threat to President Vladimir Putin since the Russian leader came to power more than two decades ago and forced the Kremlin to launch a damage-limitation exercise in which it has stressed the loyalty of the armed forces and the unity of society in the face of treachery.

Under the agreement that ended the mutiny, Prigozhin, whose aim had been to topple the defence minister and chief of the General Staff for alleged incompetence in prosecuting the war, was meant to relocate to neighbouring Belarus. In exchange, criminal charges against him were to be dropped.

But Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, who helped broker the agreement, said on Thursday that Prigozhin, who he said had visited Belarus on June 27, was currently in his native St Petersburg, Russia's second city. His fighters were at their permanent camps on Russian-controlled territory, added Lukashenko, saying an offer to host them in Belarus still stood.

The attack on Prigozhin on state TV could not have been launched without the Kremlin's knowledge and may be part of an attempt to coerce Prigozhin into fulfilling his side of the deal to defuse the mutiny.

There was no immediate reaction from Prigozhin to either the state TV report or Lukashenko's comments.

In the programme "60 Minutes", broadcast on Wednesday on Rossiya-1 television, footage was shown that had purportedly been shot during law enforcement raids on Prigozhin's St Petersburg office and one of his "palaces".

The host, lawmaker Yevgeny Popov, called Prigozhin a "traitor" and the footage was presented by an invited guest - journalist Eduard Petrov - as proof of Prigozhin's criminal past and his hypocrisy in alleging corruption in the armed forces.

The footage showed boxes full of high-denomination roubles in his office and bundles of dollars in a luxurious residence along with a helicopter alleged to belong to him, an arms cache and a collection of wigs.

A fully equipped medical treatment room, gold bars and a collection of souvenir sledgehammers, the tool Prigozhin called a symbol of vengeance to be used against traitors, were also shown.

Investigation of Prigozhin remains live

"Nobody planned to close this case. The investigation (into the mutiny) is ongoing," said Petrov.

He said investigators had concluded that a video used by Prigozhin as a pretext to start the mutiny, which had shown an alleged Russian strike on a mercenary camp, was a fake.

State TV broadcast images of armed Russian law enforcers entering Prigozhin's office. St Petersburg's Fontanka news outlet had reported that raids on properties linked to Prigozhin were conducted on June 24.

"I consider that the creation of Yevgeny Prigozhin's image as a people's hero was all done by media fed by Yevgeny Prigozhin," said Petrov, referring to media outlets financed by Prigozhin. "After it failed, they quickly closed and fled."

He said cash worth US$6.6 million (about RM30.7 million) had been found in Prigozhin's properties.

Prigozhin has said Wagner only dealt in cash, which it used to pay salaries and expenses. Putin has said Wagner was financed by the state.

The programme showed several passports in different names, which it said Prigozhin had used.

"A normal person can't have so many passports," said Petrov. "Why did this person have such strange powers, like the serious leader of some kind of criminal group?"

Photographs of Prigozhin dressed in different disguises and uniforms were leaked to the Telegram messaging app at the same time. Reuters could not verify their authenticity.

"We need to get to the bottom of who was on whose side (in the mutiny). We need to punish and prosecute them," said Petrov.