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The Wall Street Journal reports that Pavel Prigozhin has kept control of Wagner fighters in the Central African Republic and expanded his family’s business there, despite Russian authorities’ efforts to bring the group’s African operations under the Defense Ministry’s Africa Corps. The reported activities include security work, gold, medicines, weapons and media; the details and financial estimates have not been independently confirmed in the source material.
Pavel Prigozhin has retained control of Wagner fighters in the Central African Republic and expanded the family’s business there after Russian authorities took over the group following his father Yevgeny Prigozhin’s death, The Wall Street Journal reported. The account points to a continuing role for the Wagner network in the country, even as Moscow established a Defense Ministry force intended to take command of Russian operations in Africa.
The Journal reported that about 500 Wagner fighters are based in the capital, Bangui. They guard President Faustin-Archange Touadéra, fight rebel groups and take part in commercial activity, including gold mining. The newspaper also reported that Touadéra asked the Kremlin not to replace Wagner personnel with Russian Defense Ministry troops and integrated the fighters into the country’s police, army and intelligence services.
According to the Journal, Pavel Prigozhin controls the country’s largest gold deposit, which it said generates an estimated $250 million a year. The newspaper reported that local officials help move gold abroad by classifying it as government property, with recent shipments passing through Belarus. It also said Wagner has a substantial share of the local tramadol market, sells weapons to rebel groups in Sudan and Libya, and produces vodka and beer in the CAR.
The family’s overall annual earnings are estimated at more than $400 million by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, as cited in the report. The Journal described Wagner-owned radio stations that broadcast pro-Russian and anti-Western messages. Pavel, who lives in St. Petersburg, reportedly visits Bangui and stays at the Ledger Plaza hotel, which the newspaper characterized as an effective Wagner headquarters. These details and the revenue estimates are reported claims, not independently established in the source material.
Wagner’s Role in CAR Security and Trade
The report describes a network that combines security functions with commercial interests in a country where the group’s fighters reportedly serve alongside state institutions. If the account is accurate, the arrangement gives the Prigozhin family influence through both armed personnel and access to valuable resources, while making it harder to distinguish private business from state security activity.
It also complicates Moscow’s effort to reorganize its overseas forces under the Defense Ministry’s Africa Corps. Wagner’s continued presence in the CAR, as described by the Journal, suggests that local political support and established economic relationships may preserve parts of the group’s operations even after Russian authorities asserted control. The report does not establish how much authority Moscow exercises over Pavel’s activities or whether the business arrangements are formally sanctioned.
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From Wagner to the Africa Corps
Yevgeny Prigozhin died in August 2023. After his death, Russian authorities took control of the Wagner Group and created the Africa Corps under the Defense Ministry. The force was intended to assume command of Wagner’s mercenaries operating in Africa, but the Journal’s reporting indicates that Wagner personnel and business interests persisted in the Central African Republic.
Pavel was 25 when his father died and inherited an estate valued at 12 billion rubles, according to the source report. His father’s will reportedly required him to provide for his mother, wife and two sisters. Separately, the outlet Port cited an unnamed source alleging that Pavel’s unwillingness to share the inheritance caused a family dispute; that allegation is not independently verified in the material provided.
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Questions Over Control and Revenue
The report’s key details—including the number of fighters, the scale of gold exports and the family’s revenue—are attributed to the Journal and cited sources. The material provided does not include documents or responses from Pavel Prigozhin, the Kremlin, CAR officials or the companies involved, so the claims could not be independently assessed here.
It is also unclear how the Africa Corps and Wagner’s remaining personnel divide authority in the CAR, whether the reported gold shipments were legally classified as government property, and what evidence supports the allegations of drug and weapons sales. The source material does not explain the methodology behind the $250 million gold estimate or the family’s annual earnings figure.
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Responses and Further Verification
The immediate next step is whether Pavel Prigozhin, Russian authorities or the Central African Republic government respond to the reported account. Further reporting or documentation would be needed to verify the fighters’ formal status, the ownership and output of the gold operation, and the routes and legal treatment of exports.
For now, the account leaves open whether Wagner’s continued presence reflects a negotiated arrangement with Moscow, local government support, or a combination of the two. Any future changes to the Africa Corps’ role in the country could clarify whether the reported network remains under Russian state direction or operates with greater independence.
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Key Questions
What is Pavel Prigozhin reported to have done?
The Wall Street Journal reported that he retained control of Wagner fighters in the Central African Republic and expanded the family’s business interests there after his father’s death.
How many Wagner fighters are reportedly in the country?
The Journal put the number at about 500 fighters based in Bangui. That figure is attributed to the newspaper’s reporting.
What businesses are linked to the Wagner network in the CAR?
The report describes gold mining, tramadol sales, weapons sales to rebel groups in Sudan and Libya, and vodka and beer production. It also says Wagner owns radio stations in the country.
Did Russian authorities replace Wagner with the Africa Corps?
Russian authorities took control of Wagner and established the Defense Ministry’s Africa Corps to assume command of its African operations. The Journal reported that Wagner fighters remained in the CAR, but the precise division of authority is unclear.
Are the reported revenue figures confirmed?
No. The source attributes a $250 million annual estimate for the largest gold deposit to the Journal’s reporting and a family income estimate above $400 million to the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime. The provided material does not supply supporting financial records or methodology.
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