VLADIMIR Putin paid half a million dollars for the assassination of Russian rebel Denis Kapustin – but the tyrant was tricked.
The Kremlin celebrated when news broke that Kapustin, who defied the dictator to fight for Ukraine, had been killed by a drone attack on December 27.
Putin paid the £370,000 bounty Russian intelligence services had offered, unaware that he was handing cash straight to Ukraine.
But the canny rebel commander reappeared alive and well on New Year’s Day in a video posted by Ukraine’s military intelligence (HUR).
Ukrainian spies had faked the death of 41-year-old Kapustin, outsmarting Russia.
Kapustin, also known as “White Rex”, is the founder and commander of the pro-Ukrainian Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK).
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The group were known for humiliating the Russian president and his generals with cross-border attacks in Russia’s Belgorod and Kursk regions.
He had been hunted by Russia for years before his apparent assassination last week.
Reports suggest Putin even described White Rex as a “personal enemy”.
The commander had twice been sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment by kangaroo courts in Russia.
His murder was confirmed by the by the RDK itself, who posted on Telegram: “We will definitely take revenge, Denis… Your legacy lives on.”
Ukrainian spy boss General Kyrylo Budanov congratulated Kapustin on his resurrection.
Smiling, he said: “I congratulate you, as they say, on your return to life.
“That is always a pleasure.
“I am glad that the funds received for ordering your elimination went to help our struggle.”
The £372,000 bounty for killing the commander is now earmarked to help fund Kyiv’s intelligence operations.
Kapustin’s obituaries were written but the commander said his “temporary absence” had “no impact on the work of the units”.
He has returned to the fight against Russian aggression.
General Budanov said the anti-Putin commander’s death was “ordered by special services of the aggressor state Russia”, and faked by Ukrainian spies.
He added: “As of now, the RVC commander is on the territory of Ukraine and is preparing to carry out assigned tasks.”
It follows a daring assault by Ukrainian special ops in November, another humiliation for Mad Vlad.
The drone blitz destroyed a Russian air defence system worth over $1.26 billion.