MOSCOW — Russian mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin was aboard the plane that crashed north of Moscow on Wednesday, killing everyone on board, according to Russia’s civil aviation agency.
Rosaviatsia posted a list of seven passengers and three crew members who it said were aboard the plane “according to the airline.” The private jet crashed en route from Moscow to St. Petersburg, some 60 miles north of the Russian capital.
Exactly two months ago, Prigozhin led a short mutiny against the Russian military that President Vladimir Putin denounced as “treason” and “stab in the back.” The Russian leader vowed to avenge it.
But the charges against Prigozhin were soon dropped, and the Wagner chief was allowed to retreat to Belarus, while reportedly popping back in Russia from time to time.
Footage shows plane falling from sky after Russia says Wagner boss Prigozhin was on passenger list of jet that crashed
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) August 23, 2023
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A plane carrying three pilots and seven passengers that was en route from Moscow to St. Petersburg went down more than 60 miles north of the capital, according to officials cited by Russia’s state news agency Tass. It was not clear if Prigozhin was among those on board, though Russia’s civilian aviation regulator, Rosaviatsia, said he was on the manifest.
Russia’s state news agency RIA Novosti reported, citing emergency officials, that eight bodies were found at the site of the crash.
Flight tracking data reviewed by The Associated Press showed a private jet registered to Wagner that Prigozhin had used previously took off from Moscow on Wednesday evening and its transponder signal disappeared minutes later.
????#UPDATE: Russian rescuers discovered bodies of 8 individuals at the crash site. The bodies were badly burnt, requiring DNA testing for identification. Despite Prigozhin's death not being officially confirmed, his wife reported that he wasn't on the plane and is okay. However,… pic.twitter.com/SdhX16ctHo
— R A W S A L E R T S (@rawsalerts) August 23, 2023
The signal was lost in a rural region with no nearby airfields where the jet could have landed safely.
In an image posted by a pro-Wagner social media account showing burning wreckage, a partial tail number matching a private jet belonging to the company could be seen. The color and placement of the number on the engine of the crashed plane matches prior photos of the Wagner jet examined by The AP.
This week, Prigozhin posted his first recruitment video since the mutiny, saying that Wagner is conducting reconnaissance and search activities, and “making Russia even greater on all continents, and Africa even more free.”
Also this week, Russian media reported, citing anonymous sources, that a top Russian general linked to Prigozhin — Gen. Sergei Surovikin — was dismissed from his position of the commander of Russia’s air force. Surovikin, who at one point led Russia’s operation in Ukraine, hasn’t been seen in public since the mutiny, when he recorded a video address urging Prigozhin’s forces to pull back.
As the news about the crash was breaking, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke at an event commemorating the Battle of Kursk, hailing the heroes of Russia’s “the special military operation” in Ukraine.
