Soldier of Fortune Magazine The Journal of Professional Adventurers
Book Review by Heath Hansen
John Lechner’s Death is Our Business is an intense, no holds barred journey through the history of the most notorious Private Military Companies (PMC) in the world. Yevgeny Prigozhin, once a small time criminal, selling hot-dogs on a street corner and in time growing his business into a high-end restaurant, would eventually become one of the most infamous faces of the Ukraine War.
The book describes post Cold War Russia, and the complex geopolitical landscape that led to Vladimir Putin’s eventual rise to power. Early in his presidency, he dined at The Old Customs House; in this restaurant, owned by Prigozhin, the two first became acquainted. Prigozhin soon became a close confidant of the Russian President, in due course earning the nickname “Putin’s Chef.”
Prigozhin once was close to Russian President Vladimir Putin (screenshot, NATO video)
Prigozhin networked within military circles and ultimately began a new business venture, securing a lucrative deal with the government for “The Company” – Wagner PMC, and its war ensemble. However, instead of dying a hero on the battlefield, Prigozhin would live long enough to see himself become a villain warlord in the eyes of the Russian government.
Beginning operations during the annexation of Crimea in the Ukrainian Donbas region in 2014, Wagner cut its teeth in the relatively small conflict. It was here that The Company developed a reputation for violence on the battlefield; this reputation eventually lead to more contracts – this time in Syria.
In September of 2015, Wagner was charged with protecting oil fields from multiple enemy elements, including ISIS militant cells. Oil excavation and refining are the #1 industry in Syria, and if Wagner could liberate and protect oil rigs throughout the region, they would also get a cut of the profits.
The Company brought along thousands of fighters, and even created a battalion of “ISIS Hunters” from the local population. This unit executed many missions within Syria, eventually even having to test its mettle against American Green Berets in the famous Battle of Khasham.
The author does a superb job describing the intensity of the battle, giving the reader a front row seat of the events as they unfolded; this fight left hundreds dead, and even more wounded. After the battle, The Company elements regrouped and continued with operations; Wagner was composed of a broad range of fighters, some of them quiet professionals, while others were savage barbarians. Lechner describes many different characters throughout his work.
Wagner beside Touadera motorcade (Photo by Barbara Debout)
One group of Wagner fighters was recruited from the Rusich Battalion; their commander, Aleksei Milchakov was “infamous for cutting the head off of and allegedly eating a puppy before posting the photos to social media.” If Wagner leadership was committing this type of savagery, it could only be expected that the men under their command would follow suit.
The three sacred rules within Wagner ranks were: no rape or abuses against civilians, no drugs or alcohol, and no desertion – but rules are meant to be broken. Lechner explains how Wagner mercs always found a way:
The fighters Wagner recruited ranged from relatively courteous professionals to violent sadists, teetotalers to low-functioning alcoholics, and leaked internal documents show Wagner’s commanders and managers constantly policing their men, likely to the detriment of other tasks. Drinking, drug use, corruption, and gratuitous violence all carried fines and punishments.
We also learn about the background of some of the fighters. From Christians to Muslims to pagans, White supremacists, Neo-Nazis, and leaders nicknamed “Zombie,” the book does an incredible job describing the eclectic crew of fighters within the mercenary group. Civilian killings, torture, beheadings, executions of deserters, theft – the full gamut. Nothing was off limits, and this behavior would be omnipresent in every area they would occupy, including mainland Ukraine.
On February 24, 2022, Russia crossed the border into Ukraine, sparking a now three year war that has left hundreds of thousands dead. Wagner mercenaries received their fair share of the fatalities – many of those in the struggle for Bakhmut. As the death toll rose, Prigozhin realized he would need to recruit more fighters to the cause. He lobbied the Russian government for special permission to recruit from prisons; quietly, the Russian government gave the authorization.
After a two-week crash-course, the prisoners were let loose on the battlefield. According to Lechner, waves of these fighters were sent into the “meat-grinder” to weaken enemy positions, for follow-on assaults by more experienced Wagner elements. The situation on the ground eventually led to dramatic events between Wagner forces and higher ups within the Russian government. A short time later, Prigozhin, and his mercenary army, left the battlefields of Bakhmut and began their march for Moscow.
John Lechner’s Death is Our Business brings Yevgeny Prigozhin’s machinations of creating his own mercenary army to life. From humble beginnings in the streets of St. Petersburg, to winning battles with his Wagner PMC, Prigozhin did whatever was necessary for success on the front lines. Lechner brings the reader into the war zone with first-hand accounts of fighters who worked with Wagner, as well as the soldiers who fought against them.
Lechner was literally kidnapped, and held captive for two days, while doing research for this work; his fearlessness is palpable on the pages of this book. This text is required reading for anyone interested in the Wagner chapter of the Ukrainian War and the mercenary warlord who led his men through Hell.
Heath Hansen writes frequently for Soldier of Fortune.
