CNN —
A former commander of Russia’s private military company Wagner has fled to Norway and is seeking asylum after crossing that country’s Arctic border, according to Norwegian police and a Russian activist.
Andrei Medvedev, in an interview with a Russian activist who helps people seek asylum abroad, said he feared for his life after refusing to extend his service with Wagner.
Medvedev said that after fulfilling his contract and refusing to serve anyone else, he was afraid of being executed in the same way as Yevgeny Nuzhin – a defector from Wagner who was killed with a sledgehammer on camera.
“We were just thrown into battle like cannon fodder,” he told Vladimir Osechkin, head of Gulagu.net, a human rights defense group, in a conversation published on YouTube.
A spokesman for the Norwegian Police Security Service confirmed to CNN on Monday that Medvedev is in Norway seeking asylum.
“This is so far an investigation by the local police,” Eirik Veum told CNN. “But the security service, we are informed and are of course following the investigation.”
The mercenary group, led by Russian oligarch Yevgeny Prigozhin, has become a key player in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – most recently carrying much of the fighting in the small town of Soledar in the east of the country.
The group is often referred to as Russian President Vladimir Putin’s unconventional force. Since its inception in 2014, it has expanded its presence worldwide and has been indicted for war crimes in Africa, Syria and Ukraine.
Medvedev said he crossed the border near the Russian city of Nikel in a phone call from Norway to Osechkin that was published online.
The report agrees with that of the Finnmark Police District, which, without naming Medvedev, said that at 1.58am on Friday 13 January it “undramatically” arrested a man in Pasvik on the Norwegian side of the border.
In his own report, Medvedev said he crossed the border and approached the first house he could find.
“I told a local woman about my situation in broken English and asked for help,” he told Osechkin in the call. “While I was on the road, I was approached by border guards and the police. I was taken to a department where I was interrogated and charged with illegal crossing. I explained everything to them and told them why I did it.”
“It was a miracle that I managed to get here,” he said.
Medvedev had previously tried twice to enter Finland and failed, Osechkin told CNN on Monday.
Wagner’s head, Prigozhin, confirmed on Telegram Monday that Medvedev had served in his company and said he “should be prosecuted for attempting to mistreat prisoners.”
In a December conversation with Osechkin, published on YouTube, Medvedev denied committing any crimes in Ukraine.
“I signed a contract with the group on July 6, 2022. I had been appointed commander of the first squad of the 4th Platoon of the 7th Assault Battalion,” he recalled. “When the prisoners arrived, the situation in Wagner really changed. They stopped treating us like humans. We were just thrown into battle like cannon fodder.”
“Every week they sent more prisoners to us. We lost many men. Losses were heavy. In our platoon alone we would lose 15 to 20 men. As far as I know most of them were buried in LPR [Luhansk People’s Republic] and declared missing. If you are reported missing, no insurance payment will be made to the next of kin.”
He claimed that prisoners “were shot for refusing to fight or for being betrayed”.
“I’m afraid for my life,” he said in December. “I have committed no crime. I refused to take part in Yevgeny Prigozhin’s maneuvers.”
Osechkin told CNN on Monday that he began helping Medvedev after being approached by a friend in late November.
Prigozhin, he explained, has ordered all contracts to be automatically renewed from November. When Medvedev refused to renew, he was beaten, Osechkin claimed.
“Andrei decided to leave Wagner,” Osechkin told CNN. “As soon as this happened, he was wanted by Wagner’s security services and Russian special services. There was danger to life.”
“He was afraid that he would be executed the same way as Yevgeny Nuzhin – with a sledgehammer. We, as human rights defenders, have decided to help him and protect his life.”
Osechkin said he helped Medvedev with food, clothes and a phone.
“We are not attempting to justify his actions in relation to his involvement with Wagner Group. But it should be clear that he chose to flee the Wagner Group as a terrorist organization that kills both Russians and Ukrainians.”