South African prosecutors allege that Russia helped finance an attempted escape by French-born activist Kemi Séba, who is wanted by Benin over an attempted coup last December. Séba was arrested in Pretoria with his son and Francois van der Merwe, leader of South Africa’s white nationalist Bittereinders movement, as they allegedly tried to cross illegally into Zimbabwe. Authorities seized about $18,460 from the pair and are investigating the funds to confirm their origin. Officials claim Séba intended to travel to Europe to carry out attacks and was trained by Russian operatives. However, he has denied the allegations. Séba has also opposed his extradition to Benin, with that country issuing an international warrant for his arrest after he praised the would-be coupists on social media.