Cash, a sledgehammer, and an arsenal of wigs What investigators found in Yevgeny Prigozhin’s St. Petersburg mansion
New images published by the outlet Fontanka show the inside of Wagner Group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin’s home in the St. Petersburg luxury gated community Northern Versailles.
In the photos, which were taken during the Russian authorities’ search of the property, weapons and stacks of dollar bills are seen against the backdrop of the building’s opulent interior. One room contains a large sledgehammer with the words “For important negotiations” printed on the side.
On one of the walls, investigators found a photo of severed heads. Other walls show various certificates and awards, including one issued by St. Petersburg Governor Alexander Beglov, Prigozhin’s longtime rival.
Another photo shows a uniform containing Prigozhin’s medals for being awarded the title Hero of Russia and Hero of the Donbas “People’s Republics.” Investigators also reportedly found his Hero of Russia certificate, which is dated from June 20, 2022. Unofficial reports that the former mercenary leader was awarded the title began circulating in late summer 2022, but the exact date of the designation was previously unknown.
In addition, according to Fontanka, investigators found a medical office in the building, which the outlet said is “clearly left over from the time of the COVID epidemic.” The office contained various resuscitation devices, including a ventilation apparatus and an oxygen concentrator.
Images from the search of Prigozhin’s home appeared on Russia’s federal TV channels on Wednesday. In one talk show on the network Rossiya 1, commentators discussed the photos in detail.
A screenshot from video footage of the search of Prigozhin’s St. Petersburg mansion
A screenshot from video footage of the search of Prigozhin’s St. Petersburg mansion
Footage from the search of Prigozhin’s mansion and office
The following day, according to a Moscow news channel on Telegram, multiple Telegram channels linked to the Kremlin began posting photos of Prigozhin in various disguises that he presumably used in his work for Wagner Group operations abroad.
According to the Telegram posts, the disguises were intended to make Prigozhin look like a Sudanese Defense Ministry employee, a senior lieutenant from Benghazi, a diplomat's assistant in Abu Dhabi, a colonel from Tripoli, a merchant from Syria, and a field commander.
TV Rain reported that it received the same photos the previous day from a reader who claimed to be a former employee of one of Prigozhin’s companies. He promised the photos would “leak onto the Internet by morning.”