Dodging bullets, blasting ducks, protecting state secrets.
Bombastic propaganda films present the image of Russian politician Maxim Shugalei as a hero – apparently incapable of doing anything in his quest to promote the country abroad..
Although his escape has undoubtedly been exaggerated, in real life he played a major role in expanding Russian influence in parts of Africa, working closely with the Russian Wagner Group.
However, the man who would become an iron man recently suffered when he was arrested in the central African country of Chad.
He, along with fellow Russian operatives Samer Sueifan and E Tsaryov, were arrested in September on unspecified charges, before being released and repatriated earlier this month, according to the Russian embassy.
Who is Maxim Shugalei?
Shugalei often describes himself as a “sociologist” but in reality, analysts say, he is a spin doctor and agent of Russian influence known for his work on the African continent.
He has been under EU sanctions since 2023 for overseeing disinformation campaigns promoting the Wagner Group in several African countries, and is also the subject of sanctions by Ukraine.
Since at least 2010, Shugalei has been associated with the late Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner's boss and a close associate of President Vladimir Putin.
While Shugalei usually denied this relationship – as was common in Prigozhin's circles – he nevertheless started in the media for his work and subsequent arrest in Libya on charges of spying and election interference on behalf of the Wagner boss.
Prigozhin had assigned Shugalei to gather information and prepare a strategy to support Seif al-Islam Gaddafi, the son of former leader Muammar Gaddafi.
When Shugalei returned to Russia, Prigozhin revealed that he had given him 18m rubles ($173,000; £138,000) – 1m rubles for each month he spent in prison.
It is hard to know how much influence Shugalei has [Getty Images]
Shugalei's escape from Libya formed the basis of a trilogy of TV films, apparently sponsored by Prigozhin. They were designed, among other things, to glorify the regime of Wagner ally Khalifa Haftar in eastern Libya and hide Russian activities in Africa.
The role of Shugalei was played by the actor Kirill Polukhin, and the films show him “almost like James Bond, or a Mission Impossible type”, said Ladd Serwat, an expert in the African region of the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (Acled) project.
“We're shown this guy, a tough guy who's not willing to crack down on pressure or give out state secrets – so he's capable of being a paid or private military commander.”
A limited online fan page falsely claims that “Shugalei” has become an Arabic word meaning “man of unbreakable steel”.
But as a key player in expanding Russia's influence in Africa in recent years, he has been involved in some unusual real-life affairs.
In 2018, a BBC investigation found that he was one of the Russian operatives caught handing out suitcases full of money to presidential candidates in Madagascar.
Prior to his activities abroad, the only public episode of Shugalei's work as a political consultant dates back to the 2002 parliamentary elections in St Petersburg.
At that time, Shugalei was representing one of the candidates and ate several documents during a meeting of the election commission to prevent them from being taken to court.
How powerful is Shugalei?
Under Prigozhin, Shugalei's official position was head of the Foundation for the Protection of National Standards, a Wagner-supporting organization and public relations firm.
Inappropriately, he worked in various African countries to try to ensure that governments in favor of Wagner would come, and stay in power, as part of Russia's efforts to gain influence on the continent – mostly at the expense of France.
Since the death of Yevgeny Prigozhin last year, the forces operating under Wagner's banner in Ukraine and Africa have become part of Russia's official military structure.
However, Prigozhin's media empire, of which Shugalei was a part, collapsed.
As someone who works in the shadows, it's hard to know how much influence he has.
However, according to others, it is possible that Shugalei did not lose much influence despite the death of his mentor.
“He still seems to have the same influence, despite the fact that the Kremlin seems to have taken over most of the Wagner group's plans,” said Beverly Ochieng, a senior analyst at Francophone Africa for Control Risks.
It seems that he is no longer denying his ties to Wagner and Prigozhin – his Telegram channel is full of posts commemorating the late oligarch and his army, and he has also posted Wagner's employment information.
However, apart from his arrest in Chad and the July trip to Angola that he documented on Telegram, it is difficult to tell the full extent of his current activities.
Wagner's alleged bodyguards were photographed on the campaign trail with Central African Republic President Touadéra in 2020. [Getty Images]
Why was he arrested in Chad?
Chad did not provide an official reason for the arrest of Shugalei and his two colleagues.
There are many theories – some sound more than others.
Russian state-controlled news channel RT reported that the arrests were made by France, but this is likely a fiction designed to save lives, Ms Ochieng told the BBC.
Since at least May, Russia has been pushing the narrative that traditional Western influence in Chad is waning.
But, although Chad recently signed agreements with Russia on infrastructure and security, it still hosts French troops, and has good relations with the former colonial power, unlike several of its Francophone neighbors who lean towards Russia.
There is no evidence of Russian military presence in the country.
In fact, some argue that Chadian President Mahamat Déby is strategically playing Russia and the West against each other, to Chad's advantage.
Russia is striving to gain complete control over the Sahel region in West Africa, and already has close relations with two of Chad's neighbors – Niger, and the Central African Republic (CAR), a country where Russia's influence is strongest on the continent.
Wagner soldiers are said to have flown into Chad from CAR and clashed with local soldiers, before retreating.
If Russia could bring Chad into its orbit, it would create an uninterrupted sphere of influence stretching thousands of kilometers.
Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and CAR already have close relations with Russia [BBC]
Shugalei had visited Chad twice before, and held talks with Déby's campaign team before the presidential election in May. He was also linked to the Russia House cultural center in the capital, N'Djamena, which recently unveiled its new headquarters at a ceremony attended by Russian government officials.
Last year, American intelligence said they discovered that Wagner allegedly plotted to kill Déby but failed to carry it out.
Mr Serwat suggests that this may be the reason behind Shugalei's arrest.
Ms Ochieng says Chad may have been worried that Shugalei might try to discredit the country by spreading misinformation.
Shugalei's organization has denied that he is “a spy for Wagner”, saying that Shugalei “knows nothing in particular about the activities of the Wagner Group in Africa and knows only general information about what it has done in the past”.
The content of Russian-based media, TV channels and news sites are distributed to spread the Russian agenda and disinformation, especially in Africa, according to analysts.
Examples include Afrique Media TV which broadcasts from Cameroon to as far away as CAR, Ivory Coast, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger – and is on YouTube where it has thousands of followers, and enjoys many Facebook followers.
Shugalei himself pokes fun at his presence in various African countries, sometimes sharing short, low-budget, vlog-style videos that make his passion for the show clear.
In the video content aimed at Africans, many take a place similar to a fairy tale – one, called LionBear – shows a bear (symbolizing Russia) running around the world protecting a lion (his friend from the Central African Republic) from the evil influence of wolves.
“I don't think people benefit from these videos – people think they're funny, a joke,” Ms Ochieng said.
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