Sorry to debunk that myth. All information I'm aware of looks like it isn't a Zhe, but a made up symbol. Several sources, including IBM manuals do show quite different shapes.
Sources pro Zhe:
A) IBM 1620 CPU Model 1 Manual
by IBM (found here) features a glyph much like a Zhe:

Sources contrary Zhe:
B) IBM 1620 Input Output Units Manual
by IBM (found here) shows on page 22 something that can be described as two semi circles back to backwith a horizontal bar, much like a strike thru:

C) Reference Manual IBM 1620 Data Processing System
revision July 1961 by IBM (found here) prints on page 36 quite the same symbol, this time rotated by 90 degree:

D) IBM 1620 Parts Catalog
form May 1963 by IBM (found here) identifies the typebar for that symbol as #7 and associates this with the same symbol as the reference manual.

E) BASIC PROGRAMMING CONCEPTS AND THE IBM 1620 COMPUTER
by Daniel Leesons shows at page 279 an image, again like two semi circles, but this time attached to either side of a quite long vetical bar:

A bit confusing that four genuine IBM 1620 manuals of the same time show three different glyphs, while another book of the same time frame shows another different one. And only one of them might be seen as Zhe.
So far, and despite the similarity, I'm pretty sure that this symbol is not the Cyrillic letter Zhe, but a made up one. Much like the many other the 1620 typewriter features.
I guess people just tried to find a name like with other 'weired' chars like dagger, doubble dagger, pillow, lozenge, box, diamond, delta, ruber, and so on. Here maybe someone with basic Russian might have brought up the idea and it stuck. Or the Wiki remark is just one of the usual retroactive made up explanations, not rare at all among wiki entries. As for myself, I never heared about that theory, but then again, I never realy worked on a 1620 either.