Russian Mercenary Arrested in Texas at Border
Ildefonso Ortiz and Brandon Darby10 Jan 2025
A report indicates that authorities in South Texas arrested a Russian mercenary who had crossed the border illegally from Mexico.
The case took place over the weekend in the border city of Roma, Texas, when U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested Timur Praliev, a Kazakhstan national who had been a member of the private military company Wagner Group, court documents revealed.
Local reporter Dave Hendricks first reported on the case when Praliev went before a federal judge in McAllen and pleaded guilty to a charge of illegally entering the country. According to Hendricks, at the time of the arrest, Praliev had two passports, one from Khazakstan and one from Russia. He also had a drone in his backpack, $4,000 in cash, and 60,000 pesos (close to $3,000).
During the hearing, federal prosecutors brought up concerns about Praliev being released since the sentence for illegal entry is only days. According to Hendricks, U.S. Magistrate J. Scott Hacker said that Praliev would remain in some form of federal custody after his illegal entry hearing. Hacker stated he did not know why Praliev was in the United States.
The judge sentenced the Russian mercenary to time served.
https://www.breitbart.com/border/2025/01/10/russian-mercenary-arrested-at-texas-border/
