Russian media reported on August 23 that a private plane crashed in Tver province north of Moscow, killing 10 people, with suspicions that Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of the Russian mercenary organization Wagner, was on board.
The Embraer plane was flying from Moscow to St. Petersburg, carrying seven passengers and three crew members, TASS news agency reported. Russia’s civil aviation agency also said Prigozhin was on the passenger manifest, TASS reported.
"An investigation has been launched into the Embraer plane crash that occurred tonight in the Tver region. The passenger list includes someone with the surname Yevgeny Prigozhin," Rosaviatsia (Russia's civil aviation agency) said.
Other Russian news agencies, including RIA Novosti and Interfax, also reported similar reports. Accordingly, the crashed plane was an Embraer Legacy 600, with the tail number RA-02795, believed to belong to Mr. Prigozhin.
According to RT, the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations said all 10 people on board the plane died in the accident that occurred near the village of Kuzhenkino in Tver province.
According to a source on the pro-Russian Telegram channel Readovka, a plane that crashed in Tver on August 23 had been used by Prigozhin several times before the uprising in late June, as well as to fly to Belarus afterwards. However, it is not yet clear whether Prigozhin was on board the plane at the time of the crash.
Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin in a new video posted on August 21
Readovka’s source believes that it is premature to confirm the death of Prigozhin, as well as that of Dmitry Utkin, another Wagner leader, at this point. Prigozhin could be on another plane. In the past, the businessman has often confused his followers in order to maintain secrecy. As Readovka’s source points out, Prigozhin could have checked in for one plane and then boarded another.
On August 21, Telegram channels affiliated with Wagner forces posted a new video of Yevgeny Prigozhin giving a speech. This is the first official appearance of this character since the Wagner rebellion in Russia in late June.
In the video, believed to have been filmed in Africa, Mr. Prigozhin is seen wearing camouflage and holding a gun, standing in a deserted area with a pickup truck carrying gunmen behind him, according to Reuters.
"The temperature is over 50 [degrees Celsius]. Wagner PMC is carrying out reconnaissance and search operations, making Russia greater on all continents and Africa freer. Justice and happiness for the people of Africa. We are making life a nightmare for [the self-proclaimed Islamic State] IS, al-Qaeda and other marauding groups," Prigozhin said.
This character also said that Wagner is recruiting more members and will complete the assigned tasks.
The future of Wagner and Mr. Prigozhin has been uncertain since the rebellion against the Russian Defense Ministry command in late June over conflicts related to the campaign in Ukraine. Under the subsequent agreement, Mr. Prigozhin and Wagner members who participated in the rebellion were exempted from criminal prosecution but had to go to Belarus.
Some Wagner members later traveled to Belarus and trained the country's military. In July, Prigozhin was seen at the Russia-Africa summit in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and met with African officials on the sidelines of the conference, according to CNN.
In a comment published in late July, Mr. Prigozhin said Wagner was ready to increase its presence in Africa, where the force operates in many countries.
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