Co-owner of PMC Wagner Yevgeny Prigozhin commented on reports of the recruitment of prisoners to participate in the war in Ukraine. His comment was published by his company Concorde on VKontakte.
Prigozhin's commentary is presented in the form of an answer to a question from a Komsomolskaya Pravda journalist:
“It seems to me that a group of unknown persons [we are talking about PMC Wagner], who, naturally for all of us, are not there, are fighting well in the Bakhmut area for the following reasons.
First, they are patriots and cannot allow the disgrace of their Motherland. Secondly, they are professionals of the highest level and many of them (as it seems to me, looking at the photographs of their inspired faces) have gone through dozens of wars, preparing themselves for the greatest day when their beloved Motherland will have to be defended. Thirdly, it seems to me purely from my own observations and analytics, they have a management system that has been fine-tuned to the smallest detail, which may not be the most prominent personalities, but not complete fuckers. I suspect, based on the lessons of the past, present and future, that those same unfinished motherfuckers would not use Chanel perfume and dissect in Nappa leather cars, but climb basements and trenches to keep the situation under control.
Let's move on to the next question. Of course, if I were a prisoner, I would dream of joining this friendly team in order to be able not only to redeem my debt to the Motherland, but also to repay it with interest. And the last remark: those who do not want PMCs to fight, prisoners, who talk about this topic, who do not want to do anything and, in principle, who do not like this topic, send your children to the front. Either PMCs and prisoners, or your children – decide for yourself.
In general, if you summarize all your questions, then what does the convicts, PMCs and a man who looks like Prigogine have to do with it? Russia has always been, is and will be under the reliable protection of the Russian army.
The fact that Prigozhin personally recruits prisoners in the colonies, The Insider wrote at the end of August. According to the prisoners, Prigozhin does not hide the fact that Vladimir Putin personally authorized the recruitment of criminals for the war, says that he “represents an organized criminal group that helps the Russian army,” and promises prisoners from 100,000 to 230,000 rubles a month, giving preference to those convicted of murder.
On September 14, the Telegram channel of the Cheka-OGPU published a video in which Prigozhin stands in front of a line of prisoners of IK-6 and tells them about the conditions of service. A source from The Insider confirmed Prigozhin's visit to the colony and said that as a result, about 150 prisoners signed up for the war.
The head of the Rus Sitting Foundation said earlier in an interview with the Popular Politics channel that not only rapists and murderers, but also a cannibal maniac went to the war in Ukraine from Russian colonies. According to her, Prigozhin has already recruited up to 10 thousand prisoners.