Timber company under Wagner’s ownership is still supplying wood to the EU

Bois Rouge, a company under the management of Wagner PMC, has changed its name to Wood International Group (WIG) and is still supplying African timber to the European Union through Cameroon.

That’s according to the non-profit organization Earthsight and the All Eyes On Wagner (AEOW) initiative, which keeps tabs on the operations of the Russian paramilitary force.

Wagner has been spotted throughout Africa, notably in Libya, Mali, and Mozambique. Wagner has ties to the Kremlin and thousands of soldiers wich fighting in Ukraine.

The inquiry revealed that Bois Rouge took numerous steps to hide its activity after information linking it to Wagner PMC surfaced. These actions included renaming the organization, selecting fresh directors, and setting up a covert logistics network centered on a military installation in the Central African Republic (CAR).

The transaction with Bois Rouge/WIG involved WoodGroup ApS, a Danish affiliate of the UK-based Woodbois.

The largest client of Bois Rouge/WIG before being officially associated with Wagner was WoodGroup ApS, a Danish division of the UK-based Woodbois. The primary logging firm in the CAR, SEFCA, was another relationship that Bois Rouge/WIG kept up. Before now, SEFCA has been charged with supporting war criminals.

Even though Wagner’s connection to Bois Rouge had been revealed by the European media, lumber shipments to the EU continued, with both European and foreign businesses inadvertently taking part in the PMC’s operations.

Additionally, Yevgeny Prigozhin, the creator of Wagner PMC, was directly connected to Bois Rouge/WIG through businesses like Service K LLC and Ferrum Mining LLC, according to the research.

Prigozhin is currently subject to US sanctions, and the US Treasury Department has designated Wagner PMC as a transnational criminal organization. The Wagner has also been charged with war crimes, mass murders, sexual assault, and kidnapping in addition to its economic endeavors.