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  • 2022-03-03 (xsd:date)
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  • Bounty on Putin? Russian Businessman Puts Up $1M for Putin's Arrest (en)
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  • On March 1, 2022, a few days after Russia launched a full-scale attack on Ukraine, an image started circulating online that supposedly showed a message from a Russian entrepreneur who was offering a $1 million bounty on Putin's head. This was a genuine message posted by Alex Konanykhin, a Russian entrepreneur currently living in the United States. While it was genuine, it should be noted that Facebook reportedly removed the above post due to the Dead or Alive poster, which appeared to be calling for Putin's assassination. Konanykhin subsequently posted a new iteration of the message sans the Dead or Alive message. Konanykhin wrote: After posts about a bounty on Putin's head went viral, Konanykhin shared another message on Facebook calling these reports incorrect. Konanykhin said that while the death of Putin would be cheered by millions of people around the world, he only meant to call for Putin to be brought to justice. Some reports suggest that I promised to pay for the assassination of Putin. It is NOT correct. While such an outcome would be cheered by millions of people around the world, I believe that Putin must be brought to justice. Konanykhin's post refers to an incident in 1999 in which four apartment blocks in the Russian cities of Buynaksk, Moscow, and Volgodonsk were destroyed in a series of explosions. Russia blamed these explosions on Chechen militants, and the incident triggered the Second Chechen War. Some historians and journalists, however, have claimed that these bombings were coordinated by the Russian state in order to elevate Putin to the presidency. Radio Free Europe writes: Konanykhin was frequently described as a Russian entrepreneur in social media posts about his bounty on Putin. While this is true, he also has a complicated history with his home country. Konanykhin fled Russia in 1992, after being hounded by the KGB, according to the Miami Herald, on embezzlement charges that were later dropped. In the years after he fled his home country, multiple attempts were made by both the Russian and American government to have Konanykhin deported back to Russia. He was initially granted political asylum in 1999, but this was revoked in 2003, and Konanykhin was ordered to return to Russia. After a number of appeals, Konanykhin was granted asylum once again in 2007. 28 Jan 2004, Wed The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland) Newspapers.com (en)
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