Well, I found Launey's book four bookshelves to the left of where I study. Take that Israeli tertiary education!
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
For those that do not speak French, the archeologist basically explains that Scythians and the people from the northern coast of the Black Sea were deployed on a very large scale by the Kingdom of Pontus, but their presence elsewhere was very limited. One of the few rare exceptions concerned Philonichus and Molpagoras, two gentlemen from Cimmerian Bosporus, whose names were included in an inscription found in Fayoum, which has been interpreted with certainty as a list of mercenaries*. He then mentions Harmodius, originating from the Greek colony of Odessa, who left his name in a graffiti at the temple of Memnonion in Abydos, but we can't know for sure about whether he was a soldier or not. The fourth name, Olthacus, is irrelevant, as it refers to a ruler that cooperated with Mithridates VI.
In my opinion, the evidence is not very conclusive, as Launey underlines the fact that mercenaries from Bosporus were exceptional cases outside the periphery of the Black Sea. There's also no comment about Greek colonists from the region being labelled as Scythians, but Avi-Yonah probably learned about this practice from another source. It's important, however, to note that both Molpagoras and Philonichus are described as "people from Bosporus" (Βοσπορίτης) and not Scythians. Personally, I remain a bit skeptical about the possibility of Skythopolis having been populated by mercenary soldiers from the northern coast of the Black Sea under the service of the Lagids.
*For whoever is interested, the rest of the membership is composed by four Rhodians (Lyson, Cleitomachus, Agias and Dionysodorus), one Acarnanian (Tauron), one Athenian (Epimachus) and one Lesbian (he was simply from Mytilene, nothing to assume about his sexual orientation), called Appolonius.