Wagner Group: Russian state media takes aim at Prigozhin

Russian state-controlled TV has embarked on an apparent campaign to discredit Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin in the wake of his failed mutiny in late June.

Key channels showed what they said were images taken during searches at his opulent home outside St Petersburg, arguing that his riches reflected very badly on him.

They also recalled his criminal past and suggested that he was driven by greed, but failed to mention Prigozhin's persistent and often crude criticism of Russia's military and of how it pursues the war in Ukraine.

This is the first time that the state media machine's reporting of Prigozhin has been so prolific, so personal and so full of damaging details about his biography.

Until recently, Russian TV would portray a positive image of the Wagner mercenary group, which has fought alongside the Russian military during its invasion of Ukraine.

Photos said to be from inside Prigozhin's house appeared on state-run network Rossiya 1 on 5 July.