Wagner Mercenaries Remaining in Africa Have Built a Drug Empire, WSJ Says

Wagner Mercenaries Remaining in Africa Have Built a Drug Empire, WSJ Says

The Wagner PMC mercenaries remaining in the Central African Republic (CAR) have built a drug empire specializing in the smuggling and sale of tramadol, The Wall Street Journal writes.

Tramadol, a synthetic opioid analgesic, is known as “cocaine for the poor.” While the normal medical dose is 50 to 100 milligrams, in the CAR tramadol is illegally sold in doses of up to 200 milligrams per pill.

The WSJ writes that the opioid analgesic is produced in India, shipped from there to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and then to the CAR, where Wagner mercenaries control its distribution.

The drug is used by local miners and militants. The rise in the drug’s use in the CAR, the WSJ writes citing data from Uppsala University, coincided with an almost 20% increase in the number of people killed in fighting for control of areas of the country.

The drug trade is reported to not only generate income for Wagner, but also help the group control gold mining in the CAR, where, according to the WSJ, around 500 mercenaries are located. The paper writes that the PMC is run by Yevgeny Prigozhin’s son, Pavel.

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