Public Figures and Media: The Evolution of Fake News

Russian Disinformation Campaign Falsely Claims Secret Concentration Camps in Armenia

A widespread Russian disinformation campaign falsely claiming the existence of “secret concentration camps” in Armenia continues to circulate online despite official refutations from Armenian authorities. The fabricated report alleges that the actual number of inmates in Armenia’s penitentiary system is “ten times more” than officially reported, with claims of nearly 25,000 prisoners being held.

The false information originated from the “Foundation to Battle Injustice,” a Russian organization with direct ties to the late Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of the Wagner Group mercenary organization and a known Kremlin associate. The article was later republished in English on a website called “VT Foreign Policy.”

Armenia’s Penitentiary Service issued an immediate refutation, stating that as of November 24, 2025, only 1,396 convicts are being held in Armenian penitentiary institutions. The service noted this represents a significant reduction from 2010 levels, when the prison population was nearly three times higher.

Independent fact-checking organizations, including Media.am’s “Verified” team and the Fact Investigation Platform, have thoroughly debunked the claims. Their investigation revealed that the article featured criticism from two purportedly “Western” journalists – Irishman Chay Bowes and German Thomas Röper – who both work for Russian state media, a critical detail omitted from the original report. Both individuals have previously been identified as sources of false information in other contexts.

Despite the comprehensive debunking, several Armenian news outlets initially published translations of the false claims, including News.am, Golosarmenii.am, Lurer.com, Past.am, and Newspress.am. Most troublingly, these websites have not removed the disinformation even after official refutations.

The false report has gained traction on social media, with public figures like Ara Papyan sharing it on Facebook where it has been reposted hundreds of times by various individuals, including a Yerevan State University lecturer and experienced journalists. When informed that the content was fake, Papyan notably failed to remove it from his page.

The “Foundation to Battle Injustice” presents itself as a human rights organization but has been identified as a propaganda tool with connections to Kremlin-aligned operations. The foundation is headed by Mira Terada (also known as Oksana Vovk), a Russian woman who reportedly spent over two years in U.S. prison on money laundering charges related to drug trafficking before returning to Russia in 2021.

According to multiple investigations, the foundation employs a network of influencers across American and foreign social media platforms to disseminate propaganda and disinformation in Western countries. Among these appears to be Brazilian journalist Lucas Leiroz, under whose name the article was published on the VT Foreign Policy website. Leiroz, described as an “ardent admirer of Putin’s policies,” also shared the fake article on his X (formerly Twitter) account.

Notably, the disinformation was also shared by Azerbaijani source Haqqin.az, suggesting possible regional motivations behind the spread of these false claims.

The comprehensive refutations from Armenia’s Penitentiary Service, combined with the detailed investigations by fact-checking organizations, clearly demonstrate that the claims about “secret camps” are fabricated. The evidence points to Kremlin-aligned propaganda resources and their Armenian affiliates as the primary sources spreading this disinformation campaign targeting Armenia’s government.