Mikhail Svetlov/Getty
If you thought Russia’s mercenary mutiny saga couldn’t get any weirder, it just did. Photos of rebel mastermind Yevgeny Prigozhin donning a series of outrageous disguises have leaked in the Russian media, reportedly having been discovered during a raid on one of his properties.
The images, circulated by Kremlin-connected Telegram channels and reportedly broadcast on at least one state-run TV channel, appear to be part of an effort to reverse months of propaganda lionizing Prigozhin’s Wagner Group as patriotic heroes after the mercenaries killed several Russian service members in an uprising that faced absolutely no resistance.
The photos show the Wagner Group founder trying out various identities with the help of fake beards, wigs, and bogus military uniforms, sparking comparisons to the Sacha Baron Cohen film Borat.