Russian army’s General ‘Armageddon’ Surovikin ‘arrested’ amid reports he knew of Wagner Group's coup plans
28 June 2023, 22:32
The Russian army’s second in command has been arrested after reports he had advanced knowledge of the Wagner group’s planned coup.
General Sergei Surovikin, 56, has been arrested, according to sources at the Moscow Times’ Russian outlet, following reports earlier this week that he had vanished on the day Wagner Group launched their rebellion.
The army's second-in-command is allegedly facing interrogation over plans to oust defence minister Sergei Shoigu.
The sources allegedly come from individuals close to the Russian Defence Ministry, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
One said: “The situation with him was not 'OK.' For the authorities. I can't say anything more.”
While the second claimed the general’s arrest was “in the context of Prigozhin”, the Wagner group boss.
They added: “Apparently, he chose Prigozhin's side during the uprising, and they've gotten him by the balls.”
Surovikini, who commanded Russian forces in Ukraine for three months up until January 2023, has not been seen in public since Saturday, the day the attempted Wagner coup was launched.
He was previously labelled ‘General Armageddon’ after being a former defence ministry described him as “absolutely ruthless, with little regard for human life” to The Guardian.
Other reports allege that Surovikin’s family has not heard from him for three days. Read more: 'War criminal' Wagner Group boss Yevgeny Prigozhin 'not safe' in Belarus, says opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya
Read more: 'Countdown has started' to the end of Vladimir Putin's rule of Russia, Ukraine says
An online military blogger, Vladimir Romanov, claimed online on Wednesday that the general had been detained on Sunday.
He also alleged that Surovikin is being held in Lefortovo detention centre in Moscow.
It follows reports from The New York Times on Tuesday that the army general already knew of the Wagner chief’s plans to launch a rebellion over the weekend.
But spokesman Dmitry Peskov for Kremlin labelled the report as “gossip” and “speculation”.
He said: “There will now be a lot of speculation, gossip and so on around these events. I think this is one such example.”
It comes after the aborted coup over the weekend by Wagner Group boss Yevgeny Prigozhin.
Yevgeny Prigozhin arrived in Belarus on Tuesday following the uprising on Saturday, which he claimed was a protest at the prospect of the notorious private army being disbanded in July, not an attempt to topple the Putin regime.
