Yevgeny Nuzhin was once recruited as a Russian prisoner by the Wagner group. In the Ukraine war he wanted to switch sides. The mercenaries execute Nuzhin in front of the camera, Wagner boss Prigoschin applauds the cruel deed.
A video has been circulating on social media in which suspected members of the Wagner mercenary group make a brutal example of a man who once went to war with them against Ukraine. In the clip, which was circulated on Saturday’s mercenary channels, they murder their prisoner by hitting him on the head with a sledgehammer. Before he is killed, the man introduces himself as Yevgeny Nuzhin and says that during the war he decided to fight against Russia. Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of the mercenary group, expressed his delight at the shocking scenes in his company’s Telegram channel.
The ntv/RTL verification team confirms that the video of Nuzhin’s killing is genuine. Before his execution, Nuzhin gives his personal details in the clip while his head is taped to a stone ledge. After about a minute, an unknown man hits him in the skull with a sledgehammer. Nuzhin falls to the ground. This is followed by another blow to the prisoner’s head.
In media interviews conducted prior to his execution, Nuzhin explained that as a Russian convict, he was initially recruited by the Wagner Group. However, he then surrendered and wanted to fight on the side of Ukraine from then on. During an exchange of prisoners, he is said to have gotten back into the hands of Russian security forces, who then apparently handed him over to the Wagner group.
According to Reuters news agency, Prigozhin said the video should be titled “A dog deserves a dog’s death.” It was published with the headline “The Hammer of Revenge”. Prigozhin also published the comment on the channel of his company Concord: “Nuzhin betrayed his people, betrayed his comrades, deliberately betrayed them.” He was not captured and did not surrender, but rather planned his escape. “Nuzhin is a traitor,” said Prigozhin.
In late September, Prigozhin admitted that he founded the Wagner Group in 2014 to fight in Ukraine. He also acknowledged the mercenaries’ presence in Africa, the Middle East and Latin America. For years, the paramilitary group has been suspected of working in secret for the Kremlin at various conflict sites.
Moscow has always denied this and denied any connection with paramilitary groups. The Wagner troops themselves made headlines because they recruited more prisoners for the Ukraine war in Russian prison camps. Prigozhin is said to have personally campaigned for recruits in a camp.
Former Ukrainian Deputy Interior Minister Anton Gerashchenko condemned Nuzhin’s execution in a post on Twitter. There he wrote that Russia had “completely” changed to a “Nazi regime” and built its own SS. “Anything related to the Wagner group should be unattainable and illegal,” Gerashchenko said.
