By Kontur | 2025-07-25

Finnish border guards recently arrested a man crossing the dense forests near Kitee, a sleepy town in North Karelia. The individual, unarmed but not unknown, was quickly identified as a former member of Russia's once notorious Wagner Group mercenary force. His name: Yevgeny Spartun -- though that, like much else in his story, is open to interpretation.

Known online and to Russian war bloggers as Kanello, Spartun, born Zhaslan Mustakhanov in 1992, gained notoriety last October after appearing in a viral video celebrating the fall of Selidovo, a Ukrainian town in Donetsk province.

In the video, he shouts, "Brother, a walk through Selidovo -- it's a victory, my dear! We just took this city! No city in this world stands a chance against us."

The video made him a favorite among Russian pro-Kremlin bloggers, who rushed to interview the squad commander. Around the same time, he launched a Telegram channel, "Kanello OtVazhny" (Kanello the Brave), where he solicited humanitarian aid and occasionally posted political commentary. The bloggers helped boost his channel -- now deleted -- amplifying his online profile.

Kanello was popular online, but he also earned the respect of his unit. In an earlier interview with the outlet Bloknot Donetsk, a 20-year-old storm trooper with the call sign Iskra described Kanello as a courageous and capable leader.

But that image began to collapse in November, when he allegedly deserted his post and disappeared. The Russian military put him on its wanted list, a fact shared by multiple soldiers in private conversations with Bloknot editor Svetlana Larina in January.

According to volunteers, Kanello received a vehicle in December, a van needed for an evacuation team on the front line. But the vehicle never arrived at its destination, and Kanello stopped answering messages.

Then, in early 2025, he reemerged.

In February, he posted a video online. In it, he launched a searing critique of military leadership.

"I promise you, I'll find every bastard who gives criminal orders and sends our guys… to their deaths. They … go in like heroes and end up [expletive] as slaves," he said.

Later, on June 30, Kanello published another video, declaring, "Rumors are circulating that I'm a traitor, that I fled the country… For now, I can't explain everything… I'm holding back -- for the moment."

He claimed the real traitors were not defectors, but those within the Russian military who sent soldiers to die while profiting off the war -- selling humanitarian aid, inflating prices for basic gear and turning comrades into cannon fodder. He said he knew who was behind it and believed they were trying to silence him for speaking out.

The entire structure of Russia's Ministry of Defense, he said, is designed to treat soldiers as disposable.

Finnish journalist Kosti Heiskanen has reportedly found that Mustakhanov changed his name to Yevgeny Spartun in 2025, possibly to obscure his past. He uncovered court documents and media reports pointing to a long criminal history, including a brazen jewelry store robbery in Omsk in 2023. Surveillance video shows the suspect smashing a glass case and stealing four trays of jewelry. He was sentenced to six years in prison.

"The state gave him another chance -- allowed him to atone by fighting in the war," Heiskanen wrote, as cited by Bloknot Donetsk in July. But after briefly rising through the ranks, Mustakhanov allegedly went AWOL and fled.

His border crossing into Finland triggered both legal scrutiny and political interest. Yle, Finland's public broadcaster, confirmed that Mustakhanov, referred to as Yevgeny, is in Finnish custody and has applied for asylum.

Kanello's criticism fits known patterns within the Russian army, Maj. (ret.) Marko Eklund, a Finnish military analyst, said.

"The Russian army has never been known as a humane military organization. It has always tolerated horrific losses and sacrificed its own soldiers with little remorse," he told Yle in July.

Wagner's culture of violence was intrinsic to its function, said Eklund.

"Wagner fighters were motivated by money. Many of them were ex-convicts without a strong ideological commitment… Violence, including the killing of prisoners and punishing one's own troops for desertion or disobedience, was typical."

Even though Kanello has rejected interview requests, multiple photos and videos prove his identity. The Ukrainian embassy in Finland is aware of the case and is reviewing footage to determine whether he committed war crimes.

"If his involvement in war crimes is confirmed, there can be no impunity," Ambassador Mykhailo Vydoinyk told Yle.

Lawyers note that Finland has the authority to prosecute war crimes committed abroad. University of Helsinki law professor Dan Helenius said that even commanders may be held responsible for crimes committed by their subordinates, a legal standard applied in the recent conviction of Voislav Torden, another Russian fighter arrested in Finland. In March, a Finnish court sentenced him to life in prison.

As of now, prosecutors have filed no charges against Kanello in Finland, though a preliminary investigation is ongoing and expected to conclude by early fall. Both Ukraine and Russia have remained silent on the matter, with neither country requesting extradition.

What happens next -- whether Kanello becomes a defector, a witness or a political pawn -- remains uncertain. But as one of the first known Wagner Group fighters to flee west and request asylum, his case could set a precedent.

And if his own words are to be believed, he still has more to say.

"I'll get through this," he promised his followers, according to Bloknot. "And those who made my life hell -- you'll change your tune. And you'll be ashamed."