A Russian businessman has put a $1 million bounty on Vladimir Putin's head, calling for military officers to arrest him as a war criminal
Russian businessman Alex Konanykhin has put a $1 million bounty on Vladimir Putin's head.
He has called on Russian military officers to go after Putin and arrest him as a war criminal.
Konanykhin said he was putting up the bounty to "facilitate the denazification of Russia."
A Russian investor has put a $1 million bounty on Russian President Vladimir Putin's head, asking for Russian military officers to arrest Putin as a war criminal.
"I promise to pay $1,000,000 to the officer(s) who, complying with their constitutional duty, arrest(s) Putin as a war criminal under Russian and international laws," said crypto investor and California-based businessman Alex Konanykhin in a Facebook post on Wednesday.
Konanykhin claimed that Putin had violated the Russian constitution by "eliminating free elections" and "murdering his opponents."
"As an ethnic Russian and a Russia citizen, I see it as my moral duty to facilitate the denazification of Russia. I will continue my assistance to Ukraine in its heroic efforts to withstand the onslaught of Putin's Orda," Konanykhin said, using the Russian word for "horde."
Konanykhin told Insider that he had put up the bounty — which will come from his own funds — to show that the military assault on Ukraine is not being conducted in his name.
"If enough other people make similar statements, it may increase the chances of Putin getting arrested and brought to justice," he added.
Konanykhin said he has not visited Russia since 1992. When asked about whether he feared reprisal from Putin, the businessman said: "Putin is known to murder his opponents. He has millions of them now."
According to Vice, Konanykhin was at one point worth $300 million. He is now a member of the "Circle of Money" on the television series "Unicorn Hunters," along with Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak and former 'NSync singer Lance Bass.
Konanykhin was granted political asylum in the US in 1999 but ran the risk of being deported when his status was revoked four years later. His asylum status was reinstated in 2007.
Putin's invasion of Ukraine has prompted a backlash from Russian oligarchs and lawmakers. In a rare moment of dissent, three Russian lawmakers also spoke out this week about Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
Insider's live blog of the Russian invasion is covering developments as they happen.
Read the original article on Business Insider
On Putin, Lindsey Graham Calls for Russian ‘Brutus’ to ‘Take this Guy Out’
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) employed extreme regime change rhetoric on Thursday when he called for a Russian “Brutus” to “take this guy out” in reference to Vladimir Putin.
“Is there a Brutus in Russia? Is there a more successful Colonel Stauffenberg in the Russian military? The only way this ends is for somebody in Russia to take this guy out,” tweeted Graham. “You would be doing your country–and the world–a great service.”
Graham then called upon the Russian people to rise up against Putin, lest they should “live in darkness” for the rest of their lives.
“The only people who can fix this are the Russian people. Easy to say, hard to do,” he continued. “Unless you want to live in darkness for the rest of your life, be isolated from the rest of the world in abject poverty, and live in darkness, you need to step up to the plate.”
Brutus was a reference to Marcus Brutus from Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar, a friend and confidante of the Roman emperor who colluded with Cassius to assassinate him. Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg led the failed assassination attempt of Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany.
Graham’s possible allusion to an assassination attempt against Putin followed a now-deleted tweet from former Obama Russian Ambassador Paul McFaul, who said there are no “innocent” Russians if they do not rise up.
“There are no more ‘innocent’ ‘neutral’ Russians anymore,” tweeted McFaul. “Everyone has to make a choice— support or oppose this war. The only way to end this war is if 100,000s, not thousands, protest against this senseless war. Putin can’t arrest you all!”
Lindsey Graham’s comments come just one day after he offered the U.S. Senate measures to investigate Vladimir Putin for war crimes.
“What I’m doing today … is introducing a resolution supporting the complaint filed by the Ukrainian government,” Graham said. “This is a good example of where the International Criminal Court should exercise jurisdiction … I want the Senate to vote and speak with one voice in support of this complaint.”
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