Yevgeny Prigozhin, a close associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has reportedly recruited almost 1,000 inmates from two penal colonies in the southwestern Rostov region, promising them early release if they fight in Moscow's war against Ukraine.
Prigozhin is a businessman who is believed to be the leader of Russia's Vagner private paramilitary group.
The Vot Tak online television channel quoted inmates at a penal colony in the city of Bataisk on September 1 as saying that Prigozhin arrived at the penitentiary in recent days by personal helicopter along with his associate Dmitry Utkin. He then met with all of the inmates at the colony's central square.
According to the inmates, the administration of the IK-15 penal colony ordered all guards to switch off their personal video cameras while Prigozhin and Utkin talked to the inmates.
They said Prigozhin promised those who joined Russian armed forces in Ukraine will get early release in six months, adding that during the military operations in Ukraine, the inmates "can do anything they want with the Ukrainians."
The inmates also said Prigozhin warned that anyone attempting to defect or escape from the battlefield would be shot dead.
In the end, about 700 inmates agreed to join the Russian armed forces, which is roughly a half of all the inmates at the colony.
The television channel also talked to inmates at another penal colony in the Rostov region on condition that the penitentiary was not identified. They said Prigozhin managed to recruit around 300 more inmates there.
Russia's armed forces have reportedly suffered heavy casualties amid stronger-than-expected resistance from Ukrainian troops since the Kremlin launched its invasion on February 24.
Reports about the unofficial recruiting of inmates in Russian penitentiaries have circulated the country for months.
Earlier reports said Prigozhin also recruited nearly 350 inmates from three penitentiaries in the Ivanovo region.
Prigozhin rejected the report, reiterating his long-held claim that he has nothing to do with the shadowy Vagner Group.