Owned by "Putin's chef" Yevgeny Prigozhin, the Wagner PMC has begun recruiting in the prisons of the Central African Republic, recruiting people to take part in hostilities in other regions, including Ukraine. The Daily Beast writes about this, citing two high-ranking officers of the Central African Republic.
According to these data, the Wagnerites recruit dozens of rebels who were held in custody, including for the murder and rape of women and children. The officers say many of the recruits are terrorists who controlled large parts of the CAR for about a decade during the civil war and used violence against civilians and intimidated them.
An officer working at military headquarters in Bangui, the CAR capital, said Wagner PMCs began recruiting prisoners in October. “No one can stop them because the government has given them the authority to act as they want,” a source told The Daily Beast.
Another military officer told The Daily Beast that the rebels freed by Russian mercenaries would work abroad.
“They [Wagner] said they urgently need people in Mali and in Ukraine,” said an officer who works with the CAR army. "I think over 20 people we held [for very serious crimes] have been released."
Although the detainees are in the custody of local forces, the Wagner mercenaries, who have been active in the CAR since the local government turned to Russia for security and arms assistance in 2017, have been exerting influence on the Central African country's security forces.
PMC Wagner began recruiting people in Russian colonies this summer. Those convicted in August told The Insider that PMC owner, recidivist felon Yevgeny Prigozhin personally recruits prisoners in Russian colonies, offering to be released six months later for participating in hostilities in Ukraine. A video appeared on the network in which Yevgeny Prigozhin himself spoke to the prisoners.
Prigogine himself was tried for theft, fraud and involvement of minors in criminal activities. His mercenaries are involved in many operations abroad, in many cases (as in the invasion of Ukraine) under the direct command of the GRU. He got the nickname "Putin's chef" because he organized Kremlin dinners. Also, one of the founders of the PMC finances the "Internet Research Agency" – the largest "troll factory" in Russia.
At the end of October, the State Duma adopted in the third reading a law that allows the mobilization of citizens who have an unexpunged or outstanding conviction for a number of serious crimes – judging by the list of exceptions, murderers and rapists are also sent to war in Ukraine.