Ukrainian military intelligence staged the death of one of the most prominent anti-Kremlin Russians fighting for Kyiv, then collected the $500,000 bounty Moscow had placed on his head, officials reported on New Year’s Day.
Denis Kapustin, founder and commander of the Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK), appeared alive via video link during a briefing with Ukraine’s military intelligence chief Lt. Gen. Kyrylo Budanov on January 1, days after his unit announced he had been killed by an FPV drone in Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
“First of all, Mr. Denis, I congratulate you on returning to life. This is always a pleasure,” Budanov said in footage released by Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate, known by its Ukrainian acronym HUR. “I am glad that the funds obtained for ordering your liquidation have gone to support our struggle.”
He “died” the day after the anniversary of the collapse of the Soviet Union and “resurrected” on Stepan Bandera’s birthday.
January 1st began with wonderful news: the commander of the RDK, Denis Kapustin, is actually alive, and the half a million dollars received for his… pic.twitter.com/72BCJNLdHI
— WarTranslated (@wartranslated) January 2, 2026
HUR said the elaborate ruse lasted more than a month and successfully duped Russian intelligence services into believing Kapustin was dead.
In order to claim the bounty, Ukrainian intelligence operatives created footage showing two FPV strike drones: the first flying into a minibus carrying Kapustin, and the second filming the vehicle engulfed in flames.
Russian security services reportedly believed the video and paid out the bounty, HUR said.
Ukrainian intelligence released fabricated videos showing the supposed “killing” of Russian Volunteer Corps commander Denis Kapustin.
The videos were provided to Russian security services as proof of his alleged “elimination,” for which Russia paid $500,000. pic.twitter.com/NRica7p4Ae
— KyivPost (@KyivPost) January 2, 2026
“Our side also obtained the corresponding amount of funds allocated by Russian special services to carry out this crime,” the commander of the Timur Special Operations Detachment reported to Budanov during the briefing.
The HUR said that the money will be used to strengthen Ukrainian drone capabilities. HUR also said it identified “the circle of people involved, including the instigators within Russian special services and the executors.”
‘Ready to Continue Commanding’
Kapustin, who uses the call sign “White Rex,” said that he is ready to return to operations.
“My temporary absence did not affect the quality or success of the execution of combat tasks,” he said. “I am ready to move to the area of operations and continue commanding the RDK unit.”
News of Kapustin’s supposed death emerged on December 27, when the Russian Volunteer Corps announced its commander had been killed during a combat mission in the Zaporizhzhia sector, reportedly struck by an FPV drone.
Tonight, on the Zaporizhzhia front, our commander Denis «White Rex» died heroically while carrying out a combat mission.
All details will be announced later as the circumstances of the incident are being established.
We will definitely avenge you, Denis.
Your cause lives on. pic.twitter.com/DavV4hd2bU
— Russian Volunteer Corps | RVC | РДК (@rvc_army_eng) December 27, 2025
Kapustin, 41, founded the Russian Volunteer Corps in 2022 at the outset of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The unit is composed of Russians who chose to fight alongside Ukrainian forces against the Kremlin.
The RDK made international headlines in 2023 and 2024 when it conducted cross-border incursions into Russia’s Belgorod and Kursk regions alongside other anti-Kremlin formations like the Freedom of Russia Legion and the Siberian Battalion, which SOFX has previously reported on.
