From bus driver to Russian soldier: The journey of an imprisoned Ivorian recruited by Wagner Group

We investigated this Ivorian mercenary who appears as a cartoon character in a propaganda clip attributed to the group Wagner (left) and in a video in which he appears alongside Yevgeny Prigozhin (right). Both clips were published in January 2023. © Observers

A video posted in early January 2023 showed the leader of the Russian paramilitary group Wagner with a mercenary who was described as Ivorian. By analysing posts shared on social networks and talking to people who knew him at different times in his life, the FRANCE 24 Observers team managed to discover the mercenary's identity and retrace his journey. It all began as an Ivorian bus driver who came to Russia "to find a better life" and was sentenced to prison for drug trafficking, from where he was allegedly recruited by the Wagner Group.

His face began raising questions on social media on January 1, 2023, when a video was shared online showing Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of the Wagner Group. It was published by the Russian news agency Ria Novosti and then shared on Twitter, Telegram and Facebook.