The media again report the arrest of the Deputy Commander of the Joint Group of Russian Forces in Ukraine, the Commander-in-Chief of the Aerospace Forces, General Sergei Surovikin. The Nestka edition, citing a source close to law enforcement agencies, writes that the general was detained by counterintelligence, he is being interrogated in connection with the rebellion of Yevgeny Prigozhin and Wagner PMC.
Another source from Layout claims that Surovikin has been isolated and has not been in contact with his relatives for more than two weeks.
“There are many ways to keep a person in isolation from society without bringing charges – administrative arrest, initiation of another case (for example, corruption) or simply without legal justification (conditional basement), lawyer Yevgeny Smirnov explained to the publication. – However, Surovikin is a rather high-ranking figure, such people usually have a special attitude. Such people can be verbally forbidden to leave the house and communicate.
In turn, the head of the State Duma Defense Committee, Andrei Kartapolov, said that Surovikin “is resting for now. Not available".
On June 28, The Moscow Times wrote about Surovikin's detention, citing two sources close to the Defense Ministry. The next day, the information was confirmed by the Financial Times, citing three sources. On the night of June 24, when Prigozhin announced a rebellion, Surovikin recorded a short appeal to the Wagner PMC fighters with an appeal to lay down their arms, after which he disappeared. Bloomberg also wrote that military prosecutors questioned Surovikin for several days about his connections with Prigozhin. According to the publication, he is isolated, but not in prison.