A raid on Russian mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin’s mansion in St Petersburg by security services has revealed his possession of some interesting items.
Among them was a wardrobe full of wigs, and photos of Prigozhin in various disguises wearing those wigs, which were allegedly taken from his personal album.
They include photos of the Wagner boss dressed in fatigues and a fake beard in front of flags of the Libyan national army, photos of him in a keffiyeh and brown beard and wig, and one of him in fatigues at what looks like a military airbase.
While the images – which circulated on social media earlier this week – were reportedly leaked to humiliate the mercenary leader, there has been speculation that they may have been doctored.
Preliminary assessment indicates that the images were photographs of a digital device or screen such as a smartphone, due to the visible rainbow pixellation.
In the photos, the level of granular details such as the wrinkles on Prigozhin’s forehead and frown lines, appear to be consistent across all the photos, with additional detailing of a pimple in one.
Alongside the selfies, it is also possible to match at least one of the wigs in the photos, a dark blond one, to the one lying in the cupboard in his mansion.
The bad lighting, awkward and inconsistent selfie angles seem to suggest they might be authentic, although it is difficult to be sure.
Prigozhin had briefly been in exile in Belarus after calling off Wagner’s mutiny last month, but the Belarusian president, Alexander Lukashenko, said he returned to Russia on Thursday.
