Finland Sends Alleged Former Wagner Soldier Back to Russia After Asylum Request Denied

Finland deported a Russian individual who had illegally entered the country in June, as reported by the border guard to AFP on Monday. Local media suggested that the individual is a former mercenary with the Wagner private military company.

The Finnish border guards apprehended the individual, whose identity and age have not been disclosed, on June 17 after he crossed the border unlawfully through a forest near Kitee, located in eastern Finland. Although he applied for asylum, Finnish immigration authorities denied his request and initiated his deportation.

A border guard representative stated that the deportation was executed on November 14.

«Our patrol escorted him to the Niirala border crossing, where he then crossed into Russian territory,» said Mikko Kallinen from the North Karelia Border Guard District in his statement to AFP.

While officials refrained from releasing his identity, the public broadcaster Yle reported that his first name is Yevgeny, and he was previously affiliated with the Wagner group as a contract mercenary.

Kallinen mentioned that a preliminary investigation verified the man’s military past but did not provide further details regarding his connections to Wagner.

On social media, he identified himself as a soldier from Wagner and criticized the leadership of the Russian military, Yle reported.

Documents from the pre-trial investigation, reviewed by AFP, revealed that the man asserted he had been involved in combat in Ukraine before fleeing the country.

In response to a surge in asylum seekers and undocumented migrants, which Helsinki attributed to a hybrid operation by the Kremlin, Finland closed its border with Russia in December 2023.

The Nordic nation is currently constructing a 200-kilometer (124-mile) fence along its Russian border, with an anticipated completion date in 2026 and an estimated cost of 380 million euros ($441 million).

In 2023, a Russian man claiming to be a deserter from Wagner sought asylum in Norway after escaping to the Scandinavian country. Although his asylum request was subsequently denied, he received a temporary residence permit due to potential threats to his safety should he return to Russia.