Kirill Kaprizov Wanted in Russia for Allegedly Buying a Military ID

As per a number of reports on Wednesday, Minnesota Wild forward Kirill Kaprizov is wanted in Russia for allegedly buying a military ID in 2017. As per Andrew Zadarnowski, who shared a story on Sport-Express, “Upon hearing about the arrest of Ivan Fedotov, Kirill Kaprizov reportedly immediately returned to the United States. His name is linked to fraudulent military IDs being sold to players, including Fedotov, and Kaprizov is now wanted in Russia, per Sport-Express.

Related: “Duncan Keith is Absolutely Considering Retirement,” Says Oilers Insider

Upon hearing about the arrest of Ivan Fedotov, Kirill Kaprizov reportedly immediately returned to the United States. His name is linked to fraudulent military IDs being sold to players, including Fedotov, and Kaprizov is now wanted in Russia, per Sport-Express.

— Andrew Zadarnowski (@AZadarski) July 6, 2022

The Sport-Express story starts, “The story of “hockey players and the army”, which began on July 1 with the case of goalkeeper Ivan Fedotov, was continued. The story specifically notes that Farit Samigullin, a former policeman from Ufa, who was arrested in April of this year, was selling military tickets to hockey players. They add that Fedotov, forward Pavel Karnaukhov, and Kirill Kaprizov participated in illegally buying them in 2017.

It is not clear if this information is accurate or if the players did, in fact, purchase these IDs. Ivan Fedotov’s lawyer Alexei Ponomarev is denying that his client has one. Kaprizov’s father, Oleg, said, “We don’t have a military ID. Cyril is studying now, he is a student.” If this is true, Kaprizov would have a deferment from the Russian army.

Zadnarowski cited another report from Championnat that if detained, Kaprizov will serve in the Airborne Division. Three current KHL players Anvar Suleimanov (Salavat), Vladislav Lukin (Admiral), & Mikhail Vorobyov (SKA) face 12 years in prison. One junior player has decided to not return to Russia after the NHL draft.

Sources say that Kaprizov flew back to the United States, but a Minnesota Wild source says he is not in the U.S. currently. He is subject to conscription only from June 30, but the situation is obviously complicated. We’ll update this developing story as more is learned, or if the NHL plans to get involved on behalf of their players.

Next: Blue Jackets Trying Add Defenseman, In On Jakob Chychrun