Updated with reports from Interfax and RIA Novosti.
Criminal charges against Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin for "organizing an armed mutiny” have not yet been dropped as Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) continues its investigation into this weekend’s dramatic events, multiple news agencies reported Monday, citing anonymous law enforcement officials.
The FSB pressed criminal charges against Prigozhin on Friday night for inciting an armed uprising after he vowed to overthrow Russia’s military leadership. Within hours, his mercenary fighters had taken control of a Defense Ministry headquarters in the southern city of Rostov-on-Don and launched a rapid advance toward Moscow.
The charges are punishable by 12 to 20 years in prison.
However, following a deal mediated by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Saturday evening, Prigozhin agreed to abandon his rebellion and go into exile in neighboring Belarus.
The Kremlin at the time said it would drop the “armed mutiny” charges as part of the deal.
But an anonymous law enforcement official told the Kommersant business daily that the investigation into Prigozhin’s revolt remains ongoing.
The source emphasized that it was premature to reach a decision about the investigation's future, as "insufficient time has elapsed."
Similar reports were later published by the state-run RIA Novosti and Interfax news agencies, both of which cited sources within Russia's Prosecutor General's Office.
Russian authorities have not issued an official statement about the reports, and the claims made by the anonymous sources could not be immediately verified.
Prigozhin was last seen departing Rostov-on-Don late Saturday to the cheers of bystanders.
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Prigozhin's Criminal 'Mutiny' Charges Still in Place – Reports - The Moscow Times
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